The CO
by stella-pegasi
Summary: Atlantis mounts a mission to stop raiders on the planet Glostern and two young corporals are put to the test when one of the Atlantis team is wounded.
1. Glostern Raiders

**Title: The C.O.**

**Author: **stella_pegasi

**Summary:** Atlantis mounts a mission to stop raiders on the planet Glostern and two young corporals are put to the test when one of the Atlantis team is wounded.

**Rating: **T (violence, minor coarse language)

**Spoilers: **Spoilers for Remnants.

**Characters:** John S. / Rodney M / Teyla E. / Ronon D / Evan L / Carson B / assorted Atlantis personnel / original characters.

**Disclaimer: ** I do not own them; I would have treated them better.

**Notes: **The character, Corporal Rodriguez is of Puerto Rican decent and I have tried to incorporate a Puerto Rican slang word, 'broki', which means 'buddy.' If I am mistaken, my apologies for the error; it's all Google's fault.

This is an eight chapter story and I am posting three chapters now and will post the others in the next 48 hours. The story is complete, just need to proof the last chapters. Hope you enjoy and thanks so much for all the kind words. If you can take the time, let me know what you think of this story. I love hearing from all of you.

**The C.O.**

**Glostern Raiders**

_Atlantis_

"Colonel, these raiding parties are bringing our villages to a standstill. Our people are afraid to leave their homes for fear that they will return to find all their possessions gone and nothing left but a burned out shell. A man in Daster died yesterday, killed by these villains while trying to protect what little he had. So far, seven of our people are dead. We need your help."

Jast Veron was a slight man but a proud and honorable man and he was not accustomed to begging for help from strangers. He was the leader of the Village Tribunals and had sworn to protect the citizens of Glostern. He had not been able to do that on his own with only a small militia to protect the people. Feeling that he had no other choice, he had turned to Atlantis for assistance.

Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, USAF and military commander of the Atlantis base, was sitting directly across the mahogany conference table from Veron. He silently tapped the table for a few seconds before he spoke.

"Leader Veron, what kind of information do you have on these raiders? Have any of your people been able to identify them? Do you know how many raiders there are or any idea where they come from?"

"No, colonel, we do not have any information. When they attack, these men are very quick; they loot the homes of whatever they might be able to sell and then burn what is left. As for who these raiders are or where they are from, Colonel Sheppard, we have no idea. The villagers who have seen them say they wear leather masks, gloves, and hoods, their clothing very plain, no identifying marks. We assumed they came through the ancestral ring and I have had a couple of our people posted at the ring to see if they attempt to leave but we have not seen them there."

Veron glanced around the room; he was encouraged by the concern he could see on the faces of these men and women of Atlantis. Perhaps these people, who have a reputation to help the needy in the Pegasus galaxy, would help to protect his people. "We simply have no idea how they came to Glostern or where they are hiding."

"What kind of weapons do they have?" Ronon asked.

Sheppard turned to look at his friend and teammate; he was surprised that Ronon had asked a question, the Satendan usually preferred to sit back and observe. Most of the time, Ronon would save his questions for Sheppard. The fact that he spoke up was a good indication that the big guy had taken a strong interest in this situation.

"I do not know what they are called but they are very powerful; they are made of metal and have a long metal box sort of thing attached on top and metal projectiles come from them. We found small metal cylinders of a yellow color near one of the people they killed. Those who have heard the weapon say it makes a loud, popping noise not unlike the fire sparks our children love at festival time. The only weapon we have is a long gun which shoots round metal balls."

Atlantis' military members sitting around the table quickly looked at each other; all thinking the same thing. Veron's description sounded very much like a P-90, which put a completely different perspective on an already bad situation.

Sheppard addressed their visitor, "Leader Veron, I need to speak to my people for a few minutes; the sergeant will escort you to the mess hall, I imagine you might like to have some food or something to drink." He gestured to the sergeant who was standing at the conference room door.

Veron stood up, "Thank you, colonel; I have, in fact, not eaten since yesterday. This situation has been too difficult to deal with to think about myself. I appreciate your kind offer of food."

As the conference room doors were closing, Sheppard left his chair, empty coffee cup in hand and headed for the coffeepot for a refill. As he walked past McKay, the scientist held up his cup, not even looking up at the colonel.

"McKay, just who in the hell do you think I am; your personal servant?" McKay grinned and handed his cup to the scowling colonel who got his coffee for him anyway.

As he was pouring coffee into the mugs, Sheppard asked his team and Majors' Lorne and Teldy, "So, people, thoughts on the situation on Glostern?" He walked back to the table, making certain that he dropped some coffee on McKay's sleeve as he put the scientist's cup down.

"Very mature, colonel." Sheppard just smiled at the scientist.

Teyla ignored the juvenile bantering of the two men; she knew it was just their way of relieving tension. "Colonel, do you think the weapon Veron described is a P-90?"

"Sure sounds possible, which leads to a whole lot of other concerns. We know Michael's hybrids had P-90's that they found in the cache on New Athos and most likely the Genii or some of our other 'friends' may have picked up one or two along the way. As for how they have ammunition for them, that's somewhat scarier. The flip side is if they are not P-90's but similar weapons, who is advanced enough to produce a weapon with that power?"

"Colonel, are you planning on helping these people?" Major Lorne asked.

"Do you think we should, major?"

"Yes, sir, I do. I don't like bullies, thieves or murderers."

"Neither do I, major; neither do I. Let's think about how we want to approach this and formulate a mission plan. These raiders could become a threat to other planets as well as Glostern. As soon as Veron has finished his meal, we'll accompany him back to Glostern and deal with these criminals."

_Glostern_

It was late afternoon when the gate on Glostern activated and a jumper emerged, heading for the village of Beston. Colonel Sheppard banked the jumper to the southeast toward the village, the center of the planet's government. On board, along with Rodney, Teyla, Ronon and Leader Veron, Sheppard had added Dr. Carson Beckett to the team and since a little extra backup never hurt, Captain Isaacs' team.

The village was about five clicks from the gate and when they arrived, Veron directed Sheppard where to land the jumper, next to the village open-air market. The market and the village appeared deserted from the air and looked even more desolate once they were on the ground.

With Veron leading the way, Colonel Sheppard and the others made their way through the empty stalls of the market toward a broad cobblestone street that led to the village center. The sky was dark with thick, heavy clouds that seemed to hug the ground.

McKay shivered, "Why can't we just for once find a temperate climate to visit? We only get a really hot planet or a really cold planet on missions."

"Sorry that we haven't found your 'just right' planet yet Rodney." Sheppard never looked back at Atlantis' chief scientist so he missed the face that McKay made at him.

The air smelled keenly of burning wood and an aroma like burning coal, drifting from fireplaces and furnaces used to heat the village buildings and the small huts that nestled around the village. The village proper consisted of several one and two stories buildings and few three story buildings surrounding a large square with a well in the center. There a few other cobblestone streets leading into the village center in addition to the street from the market.

Ronon caught up with the colonel, "Sheppard, these roads look like they have been heavily used but I don't see any carts, wagons or animals that might be used for transportation. Seems strange to me." Sheppard nodded in agreement as they approached the doorway of the most prominent building which housed the Village Tribunal headquarters. Veron opened the heavy wood doors and motioned them to enter.

Sheppard turned to Isaacs, "Captain, I want your team to remain out here; scout around a bit and see if you can find out why there are so few people around. It might just be that everyone is protecting their homes and are not venturing into town. Just don't get too far away." The captain acknowledged his orders and Sheppard entered the building, following his teammates through the door.

Inside, the large room was warm, heated by a roaring fire burning in an oversized stone fireplace along the far wall. The room glowed with an amber hue from the light provided by the candles, oil lamps, and the fire. Sheppard noticed the shelving that lined the walls was empty except for a few books and some pottery. There were several villagers seated at numerous tables through out the room, pitchers and mugs dotted the tables.

"Colonel, everyone, please have a seat." Veron pointed to a table near the warm fireplace. He whispered something to a young man who was standing near the doorway. The youth moved toward a counter where he picked up a tray full of mugs and a pitcher that he filled with a steaming beverage.

The team walked across the room and sat at the polished wood table, the warmth of the fireplace seeping into their bones. Rodney had walked straight to the fireplace; a contented look on his face as he warmed up. The young server poured the hot beverage into the mugs and then sat the pitcher on the table. Sheppard noticed a young woman heading for the door carrying another tray of mugs and a pitcher; most likely taking hot drinks to Isaacs' team outside. He was impressed with the Glosterns hospitality that they remembered his men outside as well. He had taken his first sip of the hot cider-like beverage when he noticed a few of the villagers approaching their table.

"Everyone, this is Colonel Sheppard from Atlantis and his team, Dr. McKay, Teyla Emmagan, and Ronon Dex and their healer, Dr. Beckett. They have come to help us." Veron bowed slightly to the villagers.

"This is all you could find, leader; you did not bring anyone else? How can four men and a woman take on these monsters? These raiders have killed eight of our people, Veron, eight people that shouldn't be dead. Four days ago, they killed my brother in front of his family; took their possessions and burned their home to the ground. His wife, daughter, and two sons are now living with my family. If they did not have us, they would be homeless and destitute." The villager, a tall middle-aged man was standing toe to toe with Veron, his anger boiling over. "We are in need of more than a handful of men; we need an army to find these murderers. You and your brother need to show some leadership, if we cannot turn to you, who else can we turn to?"

Veron paled, appearing faint; Dr. Beckett quickly moved to the leader and gently pulled him into a chair. Veron voice was trembling as he looked up at the angry villager, "Eight? You are telling me that we have now lost eight of our people to these monsters?"

A dark-haired woman who had just come to the table, placed her hand on Leader Veron's arm, "Yes, Jast, while you were on Atlantis seeking their help, Paut Harben was killed as he left his home to come meet with us. His wife and daughter are missing, his home looted and had been set on fire but two passersby were able to put the fire out before it destroyed the house."

"What are we going to do? Colonel, what can we do? Veron was extremely distraught; he looked at Sheppard and implored, "Please, colonel, we cannot lose any more of our people."

Sheppard didn't answer. He looked at the woman who had just given them the news about the latest death, "Ma'am, do you know what has been done to locate these women?"

Another man who had entered the building a few moments after the Atlantians spoke up before she could answer, "Colonel, I am Dever Veron, Jast's brother, and I am the constable here. We picked up some tracks that appeared to be from several men along with smaller tracks which may have been the women. The tracks disappeared into the woods behind the house and we couldn't pick them up again."

Dever sat down next to his older brother, placing his hand on Jast's shoulder. The younger Veron was taller and broader than the village leader and at least ten years younger. There was only a slight family resemblance in the shape of their face and their grey eyes. Jast was quite dapper, with short gray hair and his clothing of finely woven fabric, tailored to fit his slight frame. Sheppard thought Dever looked more like a cowboy than a constable. His dark hair was long and pulled back in a ponytail, his dark clothes more casual and loose fitting and he was sporting a short, unkempt beard.

"Colonel, we cannot combat their weapons, we have only flint rifles to defend ourselves with. But I promise you, we would have gone after Losa and her daughter if we could have. Her daughter is only sixteen years old, colonel. We are all sick with worry about them and what could be happening to them. I believe that we would have lost more people if we had followed them but we would have tried if we had been able to find tracks."

"Dever, I am certain that any of you would have gone after them to rescue the women if you had known where to look. We would like to see the area ourselves. Would it be possible for you to take us to the house before it gets dark so that we can have a look around?"

"Certainly, colonel, please follow me." Dever walked to the doorway, grabbing his cloak from a peg and headed into the street. With a nod to the people in the room, Sheppard and his team followed.

_Outside of Beston_

The wind had picked up and it was getting colder, leaving no doubt that the weather was deteriorating. Dark clouds were hovering on the horizon, reminding Sheppard of the snow clouds in Stowe, Vermont where his dad took him and his brother skiing when they were kids. Dever said the walk to the Harben house would take about ten minutes. There was a narrow but fast moving river on the outskirts of the village and as they walked across the wooden plank bridge, Dever pointed out the mill and granary that Harben had managed.

Constable Veron talked about the family as they walked. "Everybody here adored Paut and Losa, they had done well because Paut had worked hard all of his life but they gave as much as they received, always helping those in need, opening their home to travelers. They were just good people; the daughter, Clessa is a pretty little thing and there are many who are quite angry at what they fear may be happening to her and her mother."

Sheppard spoke softly, "Believe me, Dever; we share your concern for their safety." He continued, "Who were the people who put out the fire?"

"The men were two stone masons who live on Mudon Ridge, which is less than a mile away from the Harben house; they were on their way to work on a house beyond Paut's. If you are wondering whether these men were involved, colonel, let me assure you they were not. The Wraith destroyed our way of life but we learned a valuable lesson from that horror. We learned that fighting among ourselves was foolish. There has been virtually no crime on Glostern in my lifetime and long before. An occasional young one will have too much ale and create some mischief but not one of us has died at the hand of another in many, many years. People die on Glostern, colonel, but they do not kill each other."

Dever quickly walked ahead for a few steps and Sheppard left him alone. A society not used to crime is a society in crisis. These people seemed to be exactly what they appeared to be, a kind and gentle people; now it was up to Atlantis to help them put an end to their nightmare.

The Harben house sat on a ridge where the main road from Beston intersected a road that ran horizontally past the house. As they approached, Teyla remarked, "This is a beautiful place to have been the scene of such violence." The two-story house was built of stone and rough hewn wood, the roof made of what looked like the cedar shakes used on houses back on Earth. The small yard was tidy and was surrounded by a low stone fence; the wooden gate was painted a deep green like the wooden shutters surrounding the windows.

Dever led them through the gate and along a stone paved path to the rear of the house. "Beauty can be deceiving," he pointed to corner of the house and a large section of the roof, the fire damage was extensive. Dever stood for a moment and looked at the damage, "We'll fix this for Losa whether she wishes to stay here or not after what has happened, but we will fix it."

Rodney had been very quiet during the walk from the village. The abduction of Losa and Clessa by these raiders was not sitting well with the Atlantians. The scientist spoke quietly, "We can help, constable." Dever looked around and nodded.

Sheppard turned to Teyla, Ronon and Isaacs, "Start looking around for anything that might give us a clue as to where these bastards went."

"Dever, I would like to have Rodney and Dr. Beckett to look over the house and see if they notice anything that could help us, if that's OK with you."

"Absolutely, colonel, please follow me."

They entered by the back door which had been broken most likely by the raiders and found the house in total disarray. The room they entered extended to the front of the house, and included a living, dining, and kitchen area; cabinet doors stood open, there were broken dishes scattered across the kitchen floor, and overturned furniture throughout the entire floor.

Dr. Beckett stopped near the dining table and knelt down, "Colonel, there is blood on the floor here," he stood back up, "and on the edge of the table." Turning to the constable, "You said Harben was killed outside the house?"

"Paut was lying just a few feet from the front gate; there is a blood stain where the body laid on the cobblestones. The stone masons said they didn't move the body and we didn't find blood anywhere else, so Paut must have dropped right where he was shot."

"Then someone was hurt inside this house but as to who, no way to know." Beckett sighed and continued to look for other signs of injury.

While Beckett was checking the living area, Rodney entered a short hallway off the kitchen where he found two doors leading off the hallway. The door to his left was unlocked; he opened it and found a fully-stocked food pantry. What appeared to be a brand new padlock secured the door at the end of the tiny hall. He wasn't certain why he considered the new, shiny lock out of place; people purchased new locks all the time. But in a house where a crime occurred, he thought everything was important.

Rodney left the hallway to inspect the locks on the front door and on the broken kitchen door and he found the locks on both were both old and rusty. He checked the other hardware in the house and found it all to be the same, old and rusty.

"Constable, I found a padlocked door at the end of the small hallway off the kitchen. Would you have any idea where that door might lead?

"I believe that it goes to a small basement where Paut kept wood and hotstone for the fireplace and the furnace, which is also in the basement."

McKay's eyes brightened, his scientific curiosity aroused, "Hotstone? It's used for heating, is it black and shiny?"

Dever replied, "Yes, it is; it is a mineral that is mined in the hills near here. It is one of the main reasons that we located in this area so many years ago after our population dwindled from the cullings. The hotstone is plentiful in this area and most of the veins are located near the surface which makes it is easer to mine. There are also some deeper underground mines located here which proved useful when the Wraith came. Those who could get there would use the tunnels to hide from the Wraith. If they got deep enough into the tunnel, the Wraith couldn't find them."

Sheppard realized that the discovery of coal had distracted Rodney. The scientists had forgotten all about his original question regarding the lock. Sheppard asked Dever, "Do you have any idea where Paut might have kept a key to that padlock?"

"No, colonel, I am sorry but I do not have any idea where Paut would keep any keys; it is possible there may have been keys on his body when our healer removed it from here."

Isaacs entered the back door. "Colonel, Ronon would like you to come outside, he thinks they may have found tracks." Sheppard motioned for Beckett, who was still looking around in the living room, to join them and they followed Isaacs out of the house.

Rolling hills rose behind the house with groves of trees lining the shallow valleys, through the cold mist they could see higher hills in the distance. Dr. Beckett stood for a moment gazing at the scenery. He explored such hills and valleys when he was a child in Scotland and could almost hear his mother calling him to come home for dinner.

Ronon was standing in the side yard on a slight rise that overlooked the roadway. He was watching Teyla who was examining the area just off the road where an old broken wood gate stood. Beyond the gate was narrow overgrown path leading into the hills.

"What have you got?" Sheppard walked up beside Ronon.

"There are some recent broken branches on those bushes along the road and Teyla spotted a bloody handprint on that tree near the house front gate, someone with blood on their hand must have leaned against it. There a big bloodstain on the ground next to the tree so the handprint might be Harben's; he could have grabbed the tree before he fell to the ground." Ronon pointed to the path and asked the constable, "Where does that path go?"

"There's an old fortress a few miles over those hills; it's been abandoned for more years than I know, hundreds I think. The old ones tell tales that have been passed from generation to generation about the fortresses that were built all over the planet. Once we were strong in numbers, there were populated areas all over the planet; we traded with other worlds and our planet was prosperous but there was also strife. My grandfather would tell us that our ancestors coveted each others' land and valuables, always wanting what their neighbor had and they fought for generations. That all changed when the Wraith came and wiped out so many."

"Colonel, the danger from the Wraith is over; why is this happening to us when we could actually be building our lives instead of hiding?" Dever kicked a rock lying on the edge of the road.

"Constable, I have no answers for you and believe me, I wish I did. Life just seems to happen the way it wants to, doesn't matter what we want."

Ronon had left Sheppard and the constable and joined Teyla on the overgrown path looking for more tracks. Sheppard saw them returning to the house and walked over to intercept them, Dever following him. "Find anything?"

Teyla looked back over her shoulder toward the path, "Colonel, we believe the raiders went that way. There are a few signs but these raiders are good, they have been very careful."

"Constable, can you give me an exact location for the fortress?"

"I believe that the path leads directly to the fortress and is fairly straight, colonel. I haven't been to that area since I was a child when my friends and I played there. I believe that the old fortress should be about four miles from here."

Sheppard walked out of earshot from the constable and tapped his COM, "Lorne, you overhead?" Lorne had come through the gate a few minutes after Sheppard's jumper and had cloaked immediately; his orders were to follow them while they were on the planet. The colonel liked to be prepared.

"Yes, colonel."

"Can you see the path that Ronon and Teyla were walking along a few moments ago?"

"Yes, sir."

"I want you to follow that path; there should be some kind of large building they refer to as a fortress about four clicks out. Get as much intel as you can, then return to the village and meet us back at the tribunal hall. We're heading back there now."

"Understood, colonel."

Sheppard looked up at the darkening sky, the clouds were getting lower and it was getting colder. They had done all that they could and it was getting dark; it was definitely time to return to the village.

"OK, people; let's head back to the village before it gets dark and while the weather is still halfway decent. Captain Isaacs, your guys have the point and six."


	2. Blizzard

**Chapter Two Blizzard**

_The Village _

Night had fallen by the time they reached the village, their short ten minute walk of earlier became nearly a half hour trek as the snow that had begun to fall just after they left the Harben house was now falling at a blizzard pace. The Atlantians were all looking forward to the hot spicy cider served to them earlier. They entered the tribunal building to find only a handful of people inside; one of them was Leader Veron, who was sitting a table by himself. Sheppard walked over to join him, the rest of his team not far behind. Captain Isaacs and his team sat at a nearby table.

"Colonel, did you find anything to help us?"

Sheppard unhooked his P-90 and shrugged off his TAC vest, and sat down. "We think we may a have a lead on where the raiders could have gone. Teyla and Ronon found tracks leading down an abandoned path next to the Harben house."

The young server proved as efficient as he had been when they first arrived. He had placed mugs of hot cider in front of them, along with a loaf of warm bread; bread that Rodney and Ronon were already tearing into.

"Path? Colonel, do you mean the abandoned path that leads to the old fortress?"

Sheppard nodded but couldn't answer right away; he had taken a drink of the very hot cider and was trying to cool off his mouth. Teyla answered Veron's question.

"Leader Veron, we found fresh tracks that indicate the raiders may have gone down the path toward the fortress after killing Harben. But these raiders are very good; we could not follow them for long. You should also know that we found blood on a tree near the path."

Dr. Beckett added, "We also found a small amount of blood in the house on the dining table and on the floor next to it. It wasn't a lot of blood, so I don't think the blood is from a life threatening wound."

"All this talk of blood and death, I am not certain what to do next. Please, you must tell us what to do." Veron looked from Beckett to Sheppard, desperately wanting direction.

The large wooden doors opened and Major Lorne walked in, brushing the snow from his hair and shoulders. Spotting Colonel Sheppard, he beckoned for his CO to come to him.

"Colonel, the visibility really took a nosedive while we were out there. We found the fortress, it's pretty big and looks more like a ruin than a building but some areas are intact. Sensors didn't pick up any signs of anyone inside but there is a much wider path leading away from the fortress in the opposite direction and it looked pretty well used. We flew over that path and didn't see anything; the funny thing is that the path seemed to end before it got to a road of any kind."

"So, you couldn't tell if anyone had been at the fortress recently?"

"No, sir; the snow was covering everything and it's getting worse out there."

"Major, another of the Glosterns was killed while Veron was on Atlantis and his wife and daughter were abducted. We need to find them so we are going to have to find these raiders. We can't let them pick these people off one-by-one." Sheppard motioned for Lorne to follow him and they headed toward Rodney.

"McKay, what does the weather channel on your tablet have to say about this storm?" Sheppard dropped into the chair next to him.

"Not good, from what I can tell, this storm is going to be around for a while and we haven't seen the worst of it yet. There is a really large and intense high-pressure system that just slammed into a very large and intense low pressure system, the winds are increasing, there is a tremendous amount of moisture in the air and the temperature is below freezing and dropping. I'm no meteorologist but this storm which has all the makings of a blizzard, a very nasty blizzard and it could last for days. On top of that, the sun in this solar system is in a pretty active cycle. There is a fairly large magnetic storm headed this way, should hit the atmosphere sometime this evening; that could really mess up communications and sensors for twenty-four to forty-eight hours.

"OK, that can't be good. The only positive thing we have going for us is that if we have difficulty moving around in this weather then the raiders will as well. But it is also going to be good cover for them if they do continue to invade homes; it could be days before victims are found." Sheppard was silent as he considered his next move; after a couple of minutes, he turned to Lorne.

"Major, I want you and Lt. Stackhouse and your teams to go back to Atlantis; I want Captain Waters and Lieutenant Salem's teams to come back with you. Bring cold weather packs for everyone. I know we have at least twenty backpacks ready to go, so you make up the others; check them out and make sure that we have everything we need to deal with this weather. Once you inventory the packs, add anything you think we might need; extra food and medical supplies and stock up the jumpers so that we can replenish the packs without having to return to Atlantis. And, be certain you bring more ordinance."

"Understood, colonel, we'll take care of this and be back as soon as possible."

"No, I want your guys to stay on Atlantis tonight; we'll stay here along with Captain Isaac's team. Update Woolsey when you return and have Amelia inform Kanaan that we are staying as well. Tell Teldy she's in charge while we're off world so she can juggle her scheduled missions. You guys get some sleep and come back at first light."

"Will do, colonel, see you in the morning." Lorne left and Sheppard looked over at Leader Veron.

"I hope you don't mind a few guests for the evening."

Veron looked pleased, "Not at all, colonel. We will all feel more secure knowing that you are here to protect us. I know that Dever must be happy that you will remain here tonight." He looked at his brother who was sitting on the raised hearth in front of the fireplace. Dever nodded his agreement. "Please follow me, that door leads to the public house; it is connected so that the village leaders have a convenient place to stay when there is a central meeting. There are rooms and they serve a very good meal; you should be comfortable for the night." Leader Veron got up and the Atlantis teams followed. Dever watched the Atlantians as they disappeared through the door and then followed them into the public house.

_First Night_

The public house was a smaller, cozier version of the tribunal building, large fireplace with roaring fire going, tables for dining and a long polished wooden bar extended along the side wall. A staircase led to the second floor that housed the sleeping chambers. Jast Veron led them to two tables, again near the fire.

"Please, colonel, everyone, sit here near the fire so that you may get warm. I will let the proprietor know that you will be spending the night and that you need food. I am sure you will enjoy your meal; the food is simple but it is quite tasty, hardy and hot. Most of the village tribunal leaders don't come to Beston for my wonderful meetings; they come for the great meals served here at the public house."

Before he sat down, Sheppard motioned for Ronon and Isaacs to follow him and they moved to a secluded corner past the fireplace, away from the villagers who were having dinner.

"Captain, we need to set up a watch rotation; with this storm, I doubt we will have any trouble tonight. But if these raiders have discovered we're here, I think it would be wise to err on the side of caution. No need for anyone to be outside, I just to make certain that the doors and windows are secure and they stay that way. Ronon and I will take watch as well; I want Teyla, Rodney, and Beckett to rest tonight."

Ronon grunted at Sheppard, "There you go again Sheppard, being protective. You really think that Teyla's going to like being left out?"

Sheppard shook his head, "No, she'll be mad as hell at me but she's been mad at me before, I can handle it. Ronon, she's pretty tiny and that wind is going to get rough and will likely bounce her around tomorrow. I want her, McKay and Beckett to be well rested when we go after the raiders in this mess."

"You know, colonel, Corporal Rodriguez is pretty small; he's probably going to want to get his rest tonight as well." Isaacs had a big grin on his face.

Sheppard laughed, "Captain, just tell the corporal, 'oo-rah,' for me."

"Yes, sir."

Between bites of bread, Rodney asked, "Sheppard, what's the plan? You can't seriously think that we can go searching the countryside in this blizzard? It is going to get really nasty overnight."

Sheppard took off his TAC vest and leather coat before he sat down, "Yes, Rodney, we are going out in this blizzard tomorrow. There are two women who need our help and besides, there is something going on here and we need to find out what it is."

Beckett asked, his voice low, "Colonel, you say that as if you don't believe this story about raiders; do you believe that we are not being told the truth about what is occurring here?

Just as Sheppard started to answer Beckett's question, the servers arrived carrying large trays, laden with dishes of meat, vegetables, and loaves of breads. The Atlantians took a few minutes to serve themselves and proceeded to eat in silence. Jast had been correct about the food; it was simple, hearty, delicious and best of all, hot.

While they were eating, Jast and Dever Veron came to the table. The leader asked, "I hope the food is to your liking?"

Rodney answered quickly, "Really, really good; love this bread." as he waved a piece in the air, "Do you know what they have for dessert?"

Sheppard, quickly interjected, "Rodney gets a bit enthusiastic about food, Leader Veron. However, he is right, this is very good and we appreciate your hospitality."

"We are most happy to be of service, colonel; I do not know how we can repay you other than to make you as comfortable as possible. As to comfort, the proprietor will have rooms ready for all of your people shortly. Now, I am going home for the rest of the evening and my brother has graciously offered to make sure I get there in one piece. So I will bid you good night and we will see you in the morning."

Dever added, "Colonel, our militia will be here in the morning as well. They are anxious to offer you their assistance in locating these raiders."

"Thanks, the extra manpower will be good to have, constable."

The Atlantians rose to say goodnight and watched as the two men wrapped themselves in warm hooded cloaks. Dever opened the door to leave and wind and snow whipped through the opening; the chill reaching them on the far side of the room.

Beckett shook his head, "I thought as we were walking through those wee rolling hills earlier that this place reminded me of Scotland but that wind reminds me of the Scotland I didn't like."

Sheppard pushed his plate away and stared into the fire, something was gnawing at him and he couldn't put his finger on it. He knew Ronon felt the same vibe he was feeling; he had been glad that the food interrupted his answering Beckett question. He wasn't sure he wanted to verbalize his concerns past his earlier comment.

"Colonel?"

Realizing that Teyla was speaking to him, he turned back to his teammates. "Sorry, fireplaces have always fascinated me. Got lost there for a second."

"Sheppard, you didn't answer Carson's question; do you think something not right here?" Rodney was looking at Sheppard with that look that meant he wasn't going to let the subject go.

"Look what they have told us is disturbing enough; I just have this feeling that there is more going on than just what we have been told."

"So," Rodney mused, "your spidy sense is twitching?"

"Yeah, McKay, something like that." He wanted to drop the subject so he continued, "We're going to set up watches tonight, Ronon and I will be joining Isaac's team on rotation, the rest of you can get a good night's sleep."

Teyla immediately started to protest and Sheppard had raised his hand to stop her when the proprietor came to their table and informed them that their rooms were ready.

"Boys and girl, I think that is our cue to get some rest. This storm is going to take a lot out of us tomorrow so we better take advantage of a warm place to sleep." He turned to Isaacs, "Captain, do you have the rotation ready?"

"Yes, sir; you have your choice, sir, first or last watch."

Looking at Ronon, he replied, "First watch, you guys get some rest and relieve us in three hours."

"No, sir, we will relieve you in two."

"Isaacs, are you disobeying a direct order?"

"Yes, sir."

"Fair enough, two hours it is; now go get some rest."

Sheppard sat back down and realized that the other three people he wanted to get rest were still sitting at the table. "Didn't I send you three to bed?"

"Colonel, we should also be helping keep watch," a statement from the Athosian, not a question.

"Teyla, the answer is no; I want the three of you to get a full night's sleep. The weather will be brutal tomorrow and you need energy to combat it. And before you start telling me you are more than strong enough, I know you are but you are also very light and the wind will buffet you around and sap your energy. You need to be rested; all of you do, so go to bed."

Rodney was about to protest when Dr. Beckett stood up, "The colonel is right, we are not in the physical shape of these young Marines, we need to get rest." Teyla and Rodney both started to say something, "No, the colonel has a point, Teyla, this wind will be hard on you and, Rodney, you and I are not in good enough shape to go out there without rest. So off to bed with both of you, doctor's orders."

Ronon had gone over to the proprietor while Sheppard was dealing with his team and returned to the table as Rodney, Teyla, and Carson went up the stairs. He kicked a chair out with his foot and sat down at the table. He had a mug of cider for himself and he pushed a mug full of hot water toward Sheppard. "Figured you might need coffee." Sheppard smiled and reached into a vest pocket for an instant coffee pack.

"You are so right."

"Sheppard, what do you think is going on here?"

"I don't know but Rodney was right, my spidy sense is telling me something is not adding up. For one thing, the fact that we don't know how these raiders arrived on this planet bothers me. They could have slipped through the gate without anyone seeing them but I just don't know."

"I have the same feeling."

"I don't know why I have a funny feeling about that basement door lock that Rodney noticed at the Harben house. I know people lock inside basement doors but if there was no crime here before these raiders came, why lock the door? There is only suppose to wood and coal stored there. According to Dever, Harben was a very generous guy; he would have given wood and coal to people if they needed it. Doesn't make sense."

Ronon nodded, "Sheppard, there's a lot that doesn't make sense. The thing is there were no smaller tracks, all the tracks looked like they were made by men; we never saw the smaller tracks that Dever mentioned. Unless Dever and his men are really bad trackers, they shouldn't have missed what Teyla and I found twenty-four hours after Harben was killed. Even if they just looked along the road; those freshly broken bushes around that old gate were pretty obvious."

Stretching, the colonel answered, "They haven't had any crime here so maybe they haven't developed any investigative skills. I do know that I would like to see what is in that basement, just to appease my own curiosity. We need to keep our eyes open tomorrow; somehow I think we might be in for a few surprises."

Sheppard and Ronon sat in silence for a few minutes, finishing their drinks. The first floor of the public house was deserted; the kitchen staff had left before the others went to bed and the proprietor had just gone upstairs.

"Let's do a check of the doors and windows just to make sure everything is buttoned up." Sheppard stood up and Ronon followed.

_Morning_

Sheppard woke with a start; he had another bad dream, the same bad dream he'd had over and over for the last year. In the dream, he was back on the mainland with Kolya and the events that the Sakari A.I. had planted in his mind to keep him occupied while trying to save the repository of the Sakari race. Planted? He muttered to himself, "Who are you trying to fool, Sheppard."

The fact that the punishment he suffered, the beating, his left hand being severed, the fall over the cliff, had been created by his own mind, preyed on him since that day. There were times in the dark night, when faces of the people who had died floated across his consciousness, that Sheppard wished the punishment of that day was real, not just in his head. He could have prevented their deaths if he just hadn't screwed up. He would be happy if the dreams would just go away, he didn't need to add the uneasiness this dream gave him to the edginess he already felt about the situation on Glostern.

Looking at his watch confirmed what his body clock was telling him, it was almost 0500 hrs. Peeking out from under the blanket he had pulled over his head; he could see through the cutouts in the shutters, rattling in the strong wind, that it was still dark but it wouldn't be for long. Major Lorne would be back shortly, the major was always prompt, and he knew he needed to get out of bed, get the teams fueled up, and head for the fortress. "Come on, John, time to get up."

Giving himself a pep talk certainly didn't work, he thought as he stretched his long legs and arms, flexing his muscles. It was definitely time to get up, yet he still hadn't moved. If he were back on Atlantis he would most likely be running with, or more like running after, Ronon by 0500 hrs. The fact was he was warm and comfortable; with the wind howling and most likely heavy snow falling, he simply did not want to move. "Sheppard, this is not like you."

He indulged himself a few more minutes and while he was laying there decided he needed a few days RNR. When they got back to Atlantis, he was going to organize a camping trip to the mainland; at least Ronon would go with him if no one else wanted to go along and he could coerce Rodney. Maybe he should take some of the Marines and airmen in his command, a little bonding with the troops. No, probably should just take Ronon and Rodney. Resigned to the fact that he had no choice, he threw back the covers, and stood up. After completing his quick morning routine, he dressed and headed for the lobby.

Rodney and Teyla were walking toward a table carrying plates of food; Sheppard saw a long table laden with food set up in the dining area. He summoned the server, asking for four mugs of hot water and walked over to join his team.

"Good morning, colonel." Teyla smiled. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah, nice soft bed; slept like a baby."

The server brought over the mugs of hot water and Rodney and Teyla looked quizzically at Sheppard.

"Hot water? Well, that's appetizing." McKay pushed the mug away.

Sheppard reached in his shirt pocket and pulled out some individual instant coffee packs and some other small square packs that looked like they were made from coffee filters. He threw a couple of the coffee packs at Rodney and the square packs at Teyla.

"Where's Beckett?" Sheppard asked as he watched Ronon entering the front door; his dreadlocks and shoulders covered with snow.

"Individual instant coffee packs, when did we get these? These are cool." Rodney was positively gleeful as he tore open a pack and dumped its contents into the hot water. "Oh, sleeping beauty's coming down the stairs now."

"Colonel?" Teyla held up the small folded packets.

"I believe you will find that is a 'tea bag' made with that nasty, uh…Athosian tea you drink."

"Really? How clever, thank you, colonel." Teyla dropped the bag into her mug and watched intently as the tea diffused into the water.

Beckett sat down next to Ronon just as the big Satedan was shaking the snow out of his dreadlocks. The doctor flinched from being hit by the cold, wet snow and grabbed his mug, taking a drink of hot water before he realized that the mug didn't contain the hot cider drink. He gagged and Sheppard, laughing, handed him the coffee packs.

"Sergeant Armstrong was looking for things to add to the mission rations and found these. When he showed them to me, I asked him to see if he could find a way to fix something like that for your tea. He suggested a tea strainer but that's too messy for fieldwork. So he took coffee filters and made little tea bags just for your tea; even added a little tag like on those other tea bags. If it works, he'll keep them in stock just for you."

"Colonel, you are most thoughtful."

"No problem, Teyla; need to keep everyone on their toes." As Sheppard took his first sip of coffee, Lorne and Stackhouse's teams walked in with the winter gear. Lorne came over to the table accompanied by a couple of Marines who were carrying extra backpacks.

"Colonel, good morning."

"Good morning, major, how's goes the weather?"

"Visibility about zero, winds are steady at 40 with occasional gusts to 50, temp is 27°; in other words, it sucks, sir."

"That about sums it up. I think it's too dangerous to take the jumper to the fortress, those hills aren't extremely high but it the winds increase, the possibility of being slammed into something too much of a risk, especially if the visibility is null. Rodney says we have a magnetic storm to deal with as well and it could wreak havoc with communications and sensors." Sheppard replied.

Rodney was listening to Lorne's weather data while he was looking at the weather monitoring program he had written and installed on his tablet. "Sheppard, the forecasting tool I use is telling me that those winds are going to get worse by nightfall, the height of this storm won't be here until sometime around midnight. There's already about ten inches of snow out there."

"Good thing I brought these, colonel." Lorne was grinning as he opened a duffle bag and brought out packages of thermal underwear, extra thick socks, and snow goggles. "It appears that Mr. Woolsey added some items to the cold weather gear inventory. Colonel, the sets in here should fit your team and Dr. Beckett."

"Very nice."

As the team was taking their thermals, Leader Veron, Dever Veron, and about fifteen men entered, all dressed in heavy weather clothing. The Veron brothers headed straight for Sheppard.

"Colonel, good morning. I hope you and your team slept well."

"Leader, Constable, good morning. Thank you, we were quite comfortable. Dever, I see you've brought some assistance."

"Yes, colonel, these men are members of the militia; the only ones we could reach last night due to the storm. We are here to help you find these raiders."

"Good, let's get everyone fed, geared up and then we will head out."


	3. The Path

**Chapter Three The Path**

_The Path_

Yesterday's ten minute trip to the Harben house took the combined teams nearly an hour on this miserable morning. Sheppard and Dever Veron were on point with the rest of the group fanned out across the roadway. The weather conditions were as difficult as they feared and as Sheppard had expected, Teyla was getting blown about; Ronon and three other good sized Marines had form a wind break around her and she was able to walk better. He realized that Dever was trying to say something over the wind and he moved closer to the constable.

"Colonel, I agree with you; I think that we should stop at the Harben house for a few minutes and go over the plan. Once we get on the path, we aren't going to be able to discuss much out here."

Sheppard nodded and raised his arm to stop the group. He motioned Lorne over, "Get the team leaders and have them join us in the house, everyone else stays out here." Lorne nodded and went to get the others.

Sheppard walked over to Beckett and McKay and motioned for them to follow him. They trudged through the snow that had drifted against the stone fence and had to dig the gate out so they could move into the yard. They made their way to the back of the house and entered the kitchen.

McKay immediately sat down in a chair, "How are we going to go four more miles in this stuff Sheppard. We need to get the jumpers here."

"Rodney, the winds are too erratic to use the jumpers and with visibility so low, our sensors aren't working any better than the radios; a jumper could slam into a hillside or the ground. Not going to risk it."

"Colonel, it is going to be more difficult for your people to follow the path to the fortress than it was for them to follow the main road we just traveled. The men in my militia know this area; as children, we all played around the fortress and in the old mining caves along the stream just down the hill below the fortress. I think it would be better if some of my men were assigned to your teams, so that if conditions worsen, it could help to keep your people from getting lost."

Sheppard was quiet for a moment, trying to get his breath. He realized that Dever was making sense but he was also formulating something else in his head. His spidy sense was working overtime.

"Constable, I think that would be a good idea because my guys will not have a clue where they are. Major, go with the constable and get the teams set up and make sure they get updated on the terrain we'll be dealing with; I'll be right there, I need to check with Dr. McKay and get an update on the weather."

"Understood, colonel," Lorne left the house with Dever, Isaacs, and Stackhouse following.

As the two men walked out of sight, Sheppard turned to McKay and Beckett. "We don't have much time. I need for the two of you to stay here; the radio will have a better chance of working if you are closer to the jumpers. I want you to contact Captain Waters and tell him to get here under cloak; Lt. Salem is to stay at the gate in the other jumper. When Waters gets here, the two of you get in the jumper and tell him to stay cloaked and wait here until you hear from us."

Sheppard had slipped his backpack off and was pulling something out of it. "Here are four extra light sticks, take these and mark that intersection in front of the house, Waters should be able to land there."

"Colonel, I thought you said the jumper couldn't fly in this weather?" Beckett asked.

"I lied, it's not ideal weather and if the weather gets worse, it won't be a lie but Waters is an excellent pilot; he can get the jumper here, as long as his instruments and sensors are working. Now, I need for you to use these to get that lock off the basement door and find out what is down there." Sheppard was holding up a pair of heavy-duty bolt cutters he had also pulled from his pack.

McKay was getting just a bit nervous, "Sheppard, you're going to leave us here and expect us to check out the basement?"

Sheppard took a deep breath, "Worried about the boogieman, McKay?"

Beckett simply looked at his friend, "Rodney, the colonel would not ask us to do this if he thought it was dangerous."

"Look, something's up, I can feel it and I need for you to stay here, check out this basement, and get that jumper nearer to us. Carson, who's carrying your medpack?"

"Sergeant Parker has it."

"OK, I am going to have him come over to you, you act like you are looking for something, if anyone asked, tell them you getting pain meds for Rodney. I won't be able to give Parker these orders but you can; I want you guys to hold back until you can't see us anymore. Get back to the house and lay low to give us time to get out of the area, and then contact Waters and tell him to get here, that's a direct order from me. That way you'll have two SO's with you."

Looking at McKay, Sheppard asked, "Weather."

"Bad, winds are increasing up to 45, gusts at 55-60, temp up to 28°; long range the same and the magnetic storm is getting stronger."

"OK, let's go." Sheppard put his backpack on, pulled his goggles over his eyes and headed out the door. McKay and Beckett exchanged a nervous look and followed the colonel.

Sheppard stepped back onto the roadway and even in daylight, he was having trouble seeing more than a couple of feet in front of him, the wind was churning the snow that had fallen while more was coming down. He finally spotted the large Marine carrying Beckett's extra medpack and made his way over to him. He noticed that Dever was standing very near the front gate.

"Parker, Dr. Beckett would like his medpack; Dr. McKay's back is acting up and he needs some pain meds. Take the pack to Beckett, once he has treated McKay catch up with us; we won't be that far ahead. Sergeant, I need for you to follow the doctors' orders as if they were mine," Sheppard made this statement looking the sergeant directly in the eye. With a slight nod of his head, Sgt. Parker let his CO know that he understood, responded with a 'sir' and turned to join the doctors.

Sheppard quickly caught up with Dever, "Let's go catch up with the front of the line."

Dever looked back and could barely see the three men behind them; he could see that one of them was looking for something in the bigger bag. "Everything alright, colonel?"

Sheppard could hear the suspicion in Dever's voice, "Yeah, everything's OK. Rodney has a bad back and needs some mild pain meds; the cold's bothering him a bit. Once Dr. Beckett gets some pain pills in him, they'll catch up with us pretty quickly. Don't worry, Sgt. Parker comes from snow country on our world; he won't get lost." Sheppard picked up his pace and Dever did so as well but not before he took another look back. Sheppard noticed the look back; there was no doubt, something wasn't right.

_The House_

Sgt. Parker looked at Dr. Beckett and Dr. McKay and simply said, "I believe you may have some orders for me?"

McKay answered, "Yes, the colonel wants us to stay at the house but doesn't want the constable to know. We are to contact Captain Waters and have him bring the jumper here, cloaked. We need to check out the basement of this house and then get in the jumper and wait for orders. The colonel hoped that the blowing snow would cover the fact that we are no longer with the group."

Beckett handed the sergeant the light sticks, "The colonel said to put these out to mark the landing area for Waters."

"Doctor, I can barely see you; I can't see any of the others so that should work. Corporals Brenner and Rodriguez were at the very back of the convoy; they will not let any of the Glosterns double back or wait for us." Parker took the light sticks and laid them out around the perimeter of the intersection and then returned to the two doctors.

So, we need to check on something in the house?"

Rodney answered, "Yes, Sheppard is concerned about what might be in a locked basement."

"Then, doctors', lead the way."

The wind was beginning to pick up and Rodney and Carson held on to each other as they rounded the back corner of the house and entered the kitchen. Rodney took off his backpack and began rummaging.

"What the heck is in these things?" He pulled out power bars, MRE's, socks, medical supplies but when he got to the hand warmer packs, he ripped the package open sighing as he held the warm pack in his hands. "This is wonderful."

Beckett just shook his head. "Rodney, we need to contact Captain Waters and check the basement per the colonel's orders."

Rodney looked up a bit sheepishly and said, "I know, I just wanted to feel some warmth."

Parker who had just executed a sweep of the first and second floors remarked, "Doctors', I'm just happy to be out of that wind. Now, anyone tried to reach the captain yet?" When both the doctors shook their head no, Parker pulled out his radio.

"Captain Waters, come in. Captain Waters, this is Sergeant Parker. Come in. Over."

Static was all that that came from the radio and the sergeant repeated the message. Then, weak but recognizable, they could hear Captain Waters.

"Go ahead, sergeant."

"Captain, Dr. McKay has orders from Colonel Sheppard."

Parker handed the radio to McKay, "Captain, the colonel wants you to come to the Harben house under cloak, Lt. Salem is to stay in the other jumper near the gate. The road from town t-bones into another road and the house is at the intersection. We put light sticks out marking the area; Sheppard said you have enough room to land. We have to check something out in the house so give us about ten minutes before you take off."

"Understood, doctor. It won't take more than a couple of minutes to get there, radio me when you are ready; if I don't hear from you, I will leave in ten minutes. Waters out."

Beckett pulled the bolt cutters out of his winter backpack. "Sergeant, we have a lock to cut."

_The Path_

Sheppard was positive that with the sun up the visibility had gotten worse and he admitted Dever had been right about one thing, the overgrown path was very difficult to navigate. He had gotten off the path twice in the thirty minutes they had been walking, once taking a nosedive into a snowdrift that had built up along a tree line.

At the farmhouse, he had pulled out a body heat pack and hand warmers and was more comfortable than he had been earlier. He knew that being out in blizzard conditions was suicidal but two women were in the hands of these raiders and he wasn't about to worry about the weather as long as they were in the danger.

At the rate they were traveling, it would probably be at minimum another two and a half ours before they reached the fortress with no guarantee that the raiders were using it as a hideout. He simply had a gut feeling that the fortress was being used as a hideout. Too bad there weren't any concrete facts to back up what his gut was telling him. Well, he thought, we've acted on less information; maybe we'll get lucky again.

Looking behind him, he could barely see Ronon who was staying beside Teyla. He thought he could see Captain Isaacs behind them but the visibility was deteriorating as the winds began to grow stronger. It was going to be long trek to the fortress.

_The Harben House _

Beckett had found an oil lamp and they could see better in the darkened hallway where the door to the basement was located. The hallway was not large enough for all of them, especially with the six foot four muscular frame of Sgt. Parker. The sergeant had the bolt cutters, Rodney had the oil lamp, and Beckett was waiting just outside the hall in the kitchen.

It took the strong Marine about three good squeezes on the bolt cutters to break the lock. Before he opened the door, he unhooked his P-90 and turned on the attached flashlight. Whispering, "Doc, I'll check it out and then give you the all clear. If the situation goes south, get out and radio Captain Waters to come ASAP."

Parker descended the wooden staircase, making absolutely no noise. Beckett and McKay were now both standing in the hallway barely breathing. Minutes passed before they heard the sergeant's anxious voice, "Dr. Beckett, get down here and bring your med kit. You have patients."

Pushing past McKay, Beckett said, "Rodney, get my kit and bring it down." He vanished down the stairs.

Rodney grabbed the smaller medpack and was in the basement in a matter of minutes but he wasn't expecting to see who Beckett's patients were. Sgt. Parker was holding the oil lamp while Carson knelt next to a pale woman and a young girl, both were unconscious and the woman had a nasty bruise and cut on her forehead.

"Carson, do you think that is Harben's wife and daughter?"

"Aye, Rodney, I do."

"But how could they be here, didn't Dever say that they found small tracks the day they were taken but lost the trail?"

"Rodney, that's what he said but the colonel's instincts were correct about this basement, there was something wrong here. I am now hoping his instincts are telling him not to trust the constable. I think that fellow might be part of this."

Beckett finished his initial assessment of the two women and stood up, "Sergeant, can you carry the woman up; Rodney, take the oil lamp and my kit, I'll carry the girl."

"No, Carson, I'll carry her." Rodney knelt down and picked the younger patient up and started climbing the stairs. The sergeant smiled at Beckett, "He surprises us sometimes, doesn't he, doc?"

"Aye, lad; sometimes he even surprises himself."

The sergeant smiled, gently picked up the woman and went up the stairs with Dr. Beckett following.

_The Path_

"Hey, broki, wait up." Corporal Ramon Esai Rodriguez grabbed his partner by the jacket sleeve. He stopped on the path once he had Brenner's attention.

Brenner had been concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other and was a bit miffed at his friend for breaking his cadence. "What?"

"Something's wrong, man. I just know it."

"Why do you think something's wrong?"

"These militia guys, they don't act like any military I have ever seen and I think something's up. I've been watching them. "

"Watching them? How the hell can you even see them, Ray? It's all white out here."

"Hey, man, I am a sniper remember? Got the eyes of an eagle. And I am telling you something is up. Those guys have been whispering to each other for a while now. I think it's a good thing that we don't have an escort. The colonel put us back here because those guys don't think a couple of young corporals are a threat. I think we need to drop back a bit and see what's gonna happen."

Brenner scoffed, "What? You think you have a spidy sense like the colonel? Not likely."

"Hey, maybe the colonel got his spidy sense from me. Now stay back here and be ready to slip off this trail if I tell you to, broki."

Ahead of them, Colonel Sheppard and the constable were planning how to approach the fortress in the blowing snow. Sheppard had stopped, he decided he wanted to close ranks a bit but it appeared that most of the teams stopped where they were with the exception of Ronon and Teyla who were soon standing next to him.

"Ronon, Teyla, you guys OK?"

"Yes, colonel, although I must say, I might have made it off this planet without using the stargate if Ronon had not been with me. You were right, the wind is fierce."

"I would say that fierce is a good word for it, Teyla. Guys, we should reach the end of the path in roughly another hour or so. We're going to be in a wide open field where the fortress is located, which means we are going to be really exposed. I'm counting on the blowing snow to give us enough cover so that we can get close to the building without being seen.

Dever added, "Colonel, I think if we keep our people in small groups it is less likely that all will be seen if any of us are. We should put some distance between the teams once we get there."

Sheppard nodded in agreement, "This might be the only advantage we're going to have, if we have one; we'll do it that way." Turning to Ronon and Teyla, "Dever says we will approach the fortress from the west. The only entrances are on the north which is the largest entrance and smaller doors on the east and south.

"Be careful if you take the south side of the building, there is a steep incline that starts about fifteen feet from the building and it levels out right at a stream." The constable added.

Sheppard continued, "We will need a way to coordinate everyone, I think what we need to do is set enough time for everyone to get in place; then storm the building together at a set time. Once we get to the clearing, we'll evaluate the storm conditions and determine how much time we need."

"You guys OK with this?" Sheppard asked, wondering if Ronon would tell him the truth.

Ronon just stared at Sheppard, which Sheppard knew meant he wasn't happy but he said, "OK." If things hadn't been so serious, Sheppard would have laughed instead he asked a favor.

"Get Lorne for me." Ronon nodded and turn to find Lorne.

Teyla tugged at Sheppard's arm and motioned for him to move away from Dever. When they had put some distance between them, Teyla asked, "Colonel, you seem unsettled, Ronon and I are concerned."

"You know me, always the worrier. I'm a bit concerned about this whole situation and I want you to stay close to Ronon. I don't trust these people. Stay alert and be careful; let Lorne know to keep his eyes open."

Sheppard walked away and rejoined Dever while Teyla watched Lorne walk up to the two men. He spoke with Sheppard for a few minutes as the colonel updated him and asked him to pass the plan though the group. Lorne then walked back to his group, Teyla followed.

Once the message had been passed along, they headed out again. Sheppard and Dever in the lead, with Ronon trying to keep an eye on them.

_The Jumper_

Captain Waters was able to land the jumper safely and had helped the others get the two women into the warm ship.

Rodney was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, staring out the window at the incessant snow fall. The jumper had been sitting on the road for just over two hours and snow drifts had already covered the jumper to the bottom of the windshield. Sgt. Parker was sitting in chair behind Waters leaving the back of the jumper to Beckett and his patients.

Rodney looked over at the captain, "Waters, shouldn't we try to contact the colonel?

Captain Waters shook his head, "Dr. McKay, we have gone over this several times, according to your own words, the colonel said to wait for orders. That's what the colonel meant and we are not going to contact him. We are going to wait."

"But Waters, we didn't know then that these women weren't with the raiders. Why were they in the basement and why did the constable search the house? Sheppard needs to know about this."

Waters started to answer him but Beckett walked to the cockpit door. "Rodney, Colonel Sheppard already knew something was wrong. He'll have his guard up."

"Carson, you and I both know why Sheppard went out there in this blizzard. He went out because of them." Rodney pointed to the women in the back of the jumper. "Mr. Hero has to go and save the ladies."

Beckett knew Rodney was worried, so was he and from the faces of the two military men with them, they were just as worried. "Rodney, you and I were out there because of those ladies. We were all concerned about them being in the hands of killers."

Waters leaned over in his chair, "Dr. McKay, someone locked those women in that basement and left them to die in this cold, it is wonderful that we have found them, but Colonel Sheppard will still want to find those who are responsible. Even if you let him know we found them, he would still go on with the mission. The bad guys have to pay."

"Yeah, yeah, OK, you're probably right." Rodney sat back in the seat and crossed his arms.

"Dr. McKay, let's wait a bit longer, they should arrive at the fortress within the next couple of hours, if we haven't heard from them in a reasonable amount of time, then we will try to contact them. Fair enough?"

Before Rodney could answer, they heard a moan coming from the back of the jumper. Beckett spun around to find Losa coming awake.

"Where am I? Where's my daughter?" She was frantically looking around and Carson moved a bit to the side so that she could see her daughter lying on the jumper seat across from her.

"Now, now calm down, Losa. Your daughter is right over here; she is going to be fine and so are you."

"Who are you? Where have you taken us?"

"We are from Atlantis, Leader Veron asked us to come help your people find the raiders. I am Dr. Carson Beckett, this is Dr. Rodney McKay, Captain Waters, and Sgt. Parker and you are in our ship."

"Help me sit up." Losa reached for Beckett's arm with his help she sat up; her face was pale but not as pale as when they found her in that cold basement.

"You are sure my daughter is alright?" Her voice was pleading, her eyes filled with fear.

"Yes, Losa, I promise that Clessa is going to be fine; she just needs rest. You do not need to worry about her."

"What is that?" She asked as she pointed to the IV bag hanging above Clessa's head and needle in her daughter's arm.

"I have been giving her fluids, she was severely dehydrated, the fluids will make her feel much better; I gave you fluids as well," Beckett pointed to the needle port still in her hand.

Losa sank back against the side of the jumper, pulling the blanket Carson had covered her with earlier tightly around her. She inhaled deeply as she looked into Beckett's eyes, "He killed my husband. He gunned him down in front of Clessa and me and then tied us up and put us in the basement. He laughed as he started up the basement stairs, saying that if Paut had cooperated with him, he would still be alive. He tore my home apart looking for something; when he couldn't find what he was looking for, he left us to die as well."

Beckett took her trembling hand in his, "Losa, who killed your husband?"

"The man who is sworn to protect us but instead, he is killing us. The man who killed my husband was the constable, Dever Veron."

_The Path  
_

Corporal Brenner was beginning to worry about his buddy, Ray Rodriguez. For the last hour, he had been playing cat and mouse, dragging him along for the ride. Rodriguez's latest move was to move past the group in front of them, two Glostern militiamen and Sergeant Johnston. Brenner listened to Ray as he lied and told the sergeant that they had promised to report to Lt. Stackhouse, who was midway in the line, for orders. Once they moved past Johnston and his companions, they kept on going until they were out of sight of them and could not see the group in front of them. Brenner was about to ask what the hell Rodriguez thought he was doing when his buddy grabbed his arm, put his other hand across his mouth and pushed him off the path.

Brenner and Rodriguez fell into a snow bank and stayed there for a few minutes, mostly because

Rodriguez wouldn't let Brenner up. Once Rodriguez rolled off of him, Brenner grabbed his buddy by the front of his TAC vest, pulled him close and whispered, "What the fuck was that about? You coulda warned me."

"Hey, you catching on, broki, keeping quiet is a good thing." Brenner let him go.

Rodriguez smiled at Brenner and said, "Come on, let's get back on the path. Don't want them to get too far ahead of us."

Once they were back on the path, Rodriguez leaned toward Brenner's ear and quietly told him what was up, "Listen, we needed for those last guys to think we were ahead of them. That way they'll think they were at the end of the line. We can keep an eye on them and slip off the path if something happens."

"You're loco, you know that don't you?" Brenner was looking at Rodriguez as if he had two heads.

'No, broki, not loco; you will see."


	4. The Fortress

**A Quick Note: **Thanks to everyone who has taken time to read _The C.O_. and I am happy that you have enjoyed it. Next up, Chapters four, five, and six, which will leave only two more chapters; I promise to have them up tomorrow. Thanks again and thanks for your reviews.

**Chapter Four The Fortress**

_The Jumper_

Rodney had demanded that Beckett join him and the two SO's in the cockpit of the jumper. Beckett only agreed after he got some broth from an MRE prepared for Losa who hadn't eaten in nearly three days and checked Clessa's vitals. Only then did he enter the cockpit and closed the bulkhead doors.

"I told you we needed to get in contact with Sheppard; we need to contact him now." Rodney was red-faced and was pointing repeatedly at Captain Waters. Beckett noticed, to his relief, that the captain was calm and not reacting to Rodney's outburst.

"Dr. McKay, if you will please listen to me for a just a second, I will tell you something."

Rodney's focus was on contacting Sheppard and he wasn't listening to anything or anyone. "We need to contact Sheppard now. They are in immediate danger, captain; we need to let them know about Dever."

"Rodney, calm down and listen to the captain, he is trying to tell you something." Beckett was seriously considering slapping Rodney.

Rodney looked at Beckett, about to yell at him when he saw that Beckett was angry. "OK."

"Doctor, as soon as I heard Losa say that the constable was her husband's killer, I attempted to reach the colonel, or anyone. I can't get through. With the magnetic storm and the winds that have been steadily increasing the entire time we have been sitting here; I could barely get through to you two hours ago, now it's even worse. I have tired to get in touch with Lt. Salem and even though he is much closer, there is nothing but static on all the frequencies. Dr. McKay, I will keep trying to reach the colonel."

"Then, captain, if we can't reach Sheppard by radio, we will just have to go to where they are. Get this jumper off the ground now." Rodney took the co-pilot's seat and waited for the captain to take off.

"Doctor, the weather conditions are not good; according to the HUD readouts which are sporadic because of the magnetic storm, the winds are gusting up to 85 miles per hour on the surface of the jumper. Even if I wanted to try to fly this thing, it would be dangerous through these hills. Besides we have two civilians in the back of this jumper, Dr. McKay, who have already been through enough. I am not going to expose them to any more danger."

"Rodney, I agree with Captain Waters; we can not risk the safety of these two women. So if it makes you feel better, blame me for not going after the colonel and the others." Beckett squeezed Rodney shoulder and opened the bulkhead doors to check on his patients.

_The Fortress_

Sheppard was crouched behind a large tree directly in line with the north entrance. The fortress was constructed of local stone and rose as high as a three-story building. There were no windows on the west or north outside walls and the roof was rimmed with short stone pillars. Dever informed them that there was a courtyard in the center and that part of the southwest corner had collapsed but he thought the rest of building was structurally sound or at least as sound as a several hundred year old structure could be. As to where within the fortress someone might be hiding, Dever could only guess. From their vantage point, with the wind gusts blowing thick snow into the air, it was hard to see the building much less see if there was any sign of anyone inside.

Before they left the cover of the path, the plan for assaulting the building was set. Each team consisted of three to four members and they were to disperse around the north, south, and east perimeters. They estimated that they would need at least twenty minutes to get all the teams in place but to be on the safe side, they decided to go at forty minutes from the time mark. There was two minutes to go.

Sheppard's other two team members were the constable and a Glostern named Virga Yaleus. As they waited for the go time, his mind was racing. As the teams had passed him to take their positions, he realized that three of his men were missing, Johnston, Brenner and Rodriguez. He was hoping that Dever didn't realize that the men were missing. Then again, his gut was telling him that Dever might very well know that the three Marines were missing and may have had something to do with their disappearance. Sheppard's gut feelings usually served him well and at that moment, he was hoping his gut was wrong about his men. The only problem was if this was a trap, it was too late to do anything about it.

_The Path_

Rodriguez and Brenner were nearly to the clearing at end of the path when they literally stumbled into Sgt. Johnston. Brenner fell completely over Johnston and landed face to face with the sergeant.

"Brenner, you better have a good explanation for getting in my face." Johnston lying on his side and Brenner could see that the snow under him was no longer white but pink.

"Sarge, you're hurt. Who did this to you?" He touched the sarge's neck to check his pulse, it was strong.

"Oo-rah, sergeant, your pulse is strong. Ray, help me turn him over." The two corporals struggled with the larger sergeant who was partially buried in the snow but they managed to roll him onto his back.

"Oww…Damn it, boys, watch my left leg, I think that son of a bitch broke it." The sergeant's breathing was coming in short, shallow gulps as he tried to deal with the pain. "Son of a bitch was about half my size and he took me down. I'd send one of you two to take care of him but if he took me out, he'd wipe they floor with you two shrimps."

"Well, broki, it seems that the sergeant hasn't lost any of his acerbic wit." Ray was checking Johnston leg to locate the break. "Sarge, where else are you hurt?"

"Rodriguez, you been dating one of those scientists? Is that how you learned such a big word?" Both corporals laughed as Johnston continued, "Damn fool stuck a knife in my side but it hit the edge of my vest, threw his aim off, just went straight through flesh. I lost my balance and fell; before I could get to my gun, the other bastard took his rifle and whammed it into my leg until he heard it snap. I was tying to yell for help but I wasn't making any noise. I didn't realize that my head was pushed down in the snow until I tried to roll over to protect myself. One of them must have smacked me in the head and I guess I blacked out for a few minutes.

"Sergeant, hold on, let me take your guns and your Ka-Bar while we are getting you winterized." As he removed the weapons, Brenner asked, "Why did they attack you?"

Johnston tried to laugh but it sounded more like a whimper, "Damn fools didn't even take my guns? They are idiots." He took another shallow breath. "Those two attacked me because they realized I had overheard them talking about what was really going on and they didn't want me to get to the colonel. Boys, we're walking into a trap."

Brenner looked at Rodriguez and shook his head, "Spidy sense, huh."

"What are you talking about, Brenner? Hey, watch my leg, Ray."

"Sorry, I need to make sure the bleeding from the stab wound has stopped. Once we get a bandage on there you'll be more comfortable. I'm going have to find some sticks to splint your leg with. I can't feel enough to tell if it's a clean break or not. I can't try to set it, Sarge." He removed medical supplies from the sarge's TAC vest and started tending the stab wound in the sergeant's side.

Brenner had taken Johnston's backpack off his shoulders and unzipped the bottom compartment which held a cold weather sleeping bag system. He rolled the bags out putting some rocks and heavy branches on them to keep them from blowing away. Then he retrieved the body and hand warmers from the pack, activated a couple and placed them on the sergeant's chest and into his hands. While he was getting everything ready, he answered Johnston's question.

"Sarge, Ray here caught the spidy sense bug from the colonel. He's been saying something was wrong since we left the village and as much as I hate to say it, I think he was right."

"I heard that." Ray had returned from getting a couple of sturdy branches to splint the sergeant's leg. He took his knife out and trimmed the branches. "Come here, Brenner, need your help."

The next few minutes were tense as they immobilized the sarge's leg and made certain the bandages were in place and that there was no bleeding from the wound. They maneuvered him into the cold weather sleeping bags with some difficulty, trying not to jar his leg. The double sleeping bag system didn't give the big sergeant a lot of room but would provide protection from hypothermia. Brenner activated more hand and body warmer packs and slipped some extras in the bag where the sarge could reach them, placed Johnston's 5-mil, P-90, and Ka-Bar where he could access them along with some ammunition. Lastly, he put a canteen, some power bars and aspirin packs in as well. Once he had all the provisions that he thought the sarge would need, Brenner fastened the hood around Johnston's head.

Brenner knew that the sergeant was in pain, "Sgt. Johnston, do you want a little morphine? I don't have to give you a full dose, just enough to take the edge off.

"No, I am gonna need to say alert, just give me some aspirin. When you come back for me, you can shoot me with all the morphine you got." Brenner nodded, thinking this was one tough guy.

While Brenner finished getting the sarge outfitted, Rodriguez built a lean-to off the path behind some trees, using a poncho and more sticks he had cut. He laid a Mylar emergency blanket on the ground that would protect the sergeant's sleeping bag from the cold, wet ground. Then he and Brenner carried the sarge over and laid him under the lean-to.

Rodriguez knelt down and flashed a smile at Johnston, "Sarge, you should be fine here. These thick trees are blocking the wind which is keeping the snow from piling up. The poncho should keep the snow from covering you up; maybe every now and then, you should try to knock the snow off the poncho so the lean-to doesn't collapse. Johnston, I don't know how long we'll be gone but I promise we're coming back for you.

"Enough, corporals, go help the colonel. That's an order." Johnston used his most commanding voice.

"Yes, sir!" The corporals' words echoed together as they took off down the path toward the fortress. As he lost sight of them, Johnston said quietly, "Thanks, guys; you two are fine Marines, Semper Fi."

_The Fortress_

At the go time, Sheppard, Dever, and Virga moved forward toward the north fortress door. A gust of wind had blown snow in their direction just as they had move greatly reducing what little visibility that they had. Sheppard was on point for his team and could no longer see the two men who were just a few feet behind him much less the other teams that should be to his right and left. The snow was knee deep and each step he took felt like he was lifting weights with his legs. The only encouraging things he could think of was that he hadn't heard gunfire and the wind seemed to be dying down some as they got closer to the building.

The trek to the building took longer than Sheppard had anticipated due to the deep snow. When he finally saw rock directly in front of him, he decided to rest a minute. Behind him, the colonel could hear Dever saying something but the wind was blowing the constable's words away from Sheppard. He reached out and ran his hand along the wall looking for the door. With the difficulty getting through the snow and not being able to see the building as a point of reference, he wasn't certain if he had drifted to the right or left of the door.

Sheppard felt a hand on his arm pulling him to the right. He could see Dever under the hood of his cloak and make out he was telling him to come toward him. As Sheppard got closer, he could see the tall, weathered double doors that let into the fortress. The plan was to wait at the doors for the other teams assigned to that side to reach the doors so that there would be a larger assault force. Dever and Virga, however, were opening the door, struggling to move the door though the heavy snow.

Sheppard walked up to them, "I thought we were going to wait for everyone to get here before we opened the door." He wasn't conscious of the fact that his hand had automatically gone to the handgrip of his 9-mil.

"Don't worry, colonel. We realized that it was going to take some time to get the doors open, so we thought we should get started." Dever gave him a wan smile.

They got the door open enough to pass through and Virga entered the fortress. As Sheppard started to protest, he felt cold metal pressed against his temple. Dever chuckled, "Well, well, colonel, I bet you never saw this coming, did you." Sheppard felt strong hands grab him from behind, taking his 9-mil as Dever unclipped the P-90 from his vest. He stumble on the rough stone floor as he was pushed through the door way. The doors had led into a breezeway which ran the width of the building and opened onto the courtyard in the center of the fortress. Standing at the other end was several of Dever's men with weapons trained on the other Atlantian teams who had come in from the other doors. Well, Sheppard thought, he was scoring a hundred percent on the spidy sense-o-meter.

Dever's motioned for one of his minions to come over to him, "Tie the colonel's hands behind his back and take him to the cells on the south side. Take the rest of them into the old meeting hall and keep them under guard." Sheppard saw three men, one of whom was sporting a bloody nose, carry an unconscious Ronon into the breezeway. Major Lorne and Captain Isaacs, both supported by their teammates, had suffered bloody head wounds. He was trying to get someone's attention but one the men who was 'escorting' him, slugged him in the kidney and he went down on his knees. His captors dragged him through the snow toward a doorway on the east side of the courtyard.

_Fortress Grounds_

The winds had died down a bit as Corporals Rodriguez and Brenner reached the tree line along the west side of the fortress and they decided to make a run for the building. They had made it to the northwest corner of the fortress when they witnessed Dever putting a gun to Colonel Sheppard's head.

"Shit, Ray, I'll never question your spidy sense again." Brenner was breathing hard and wondering what the hell the two of them could do to get their people free. "What are we going to do, man?"

"We gotta get in there, broki. We gotta get those people free. Come on; let's scout around the building and see if there's a place to get in without being seen." The two young Marines headed toward the north side of the building.

_The Cellblock_

Sheppard was lying on his side on a cold, cell floor and he was pretty pissed off. His head hurt, his back hurt where he had been punched, his legs were aching from pushing against the snow and he was cold. Lying there, he could only imagine what Rodney would say to him, 'Sheppard, it you didn't think that you had to rescue every damsel or innocent in distress, then this wouldn't have happened.' He was beginning to believe that Rodney might be right. He knew something was wrong but there just wasn't enough information. Well, he had at least enough information now to let him know that he been punked.

The two bastards who had dragged him across the snowy courtyard had taken his backpack, TAC vest, weapons, and his leather jacket. Spoils of war, he supposed but he would really like to have that jacket back. They had not gotten the knife hidden in his boot; he was learning from Ronon. The small knife made him feel like he might have a chance to get away from them. He was thankful that they hadn't tied his hands again after untying them to take his things. He leaned his hand against the wall for leverage and managed to get onto his feet. His goal was to look out of the small window that was just above his head and try to get his bearings. He grabbed onto the metal bars and pulled himself up, catching a quick glimpse outside. 'Brilliant John, that was a real help, it's white out there.'

More than thirty minutes had passed since he had been tossed into the cell and he was getting antsy and was more than a little worried about his people. He was concerned about Ronon, Lorne, and Isaacs who he knew were injured and didn't have any idea what had happened to Johnston, Rodriguez and Brenner. At least he knew that Rodney and Beckett were safe in a cloaked jumper.

Another ten minutes passed and he was pacing, trying to stay warm, when he heard footsteps on the stones that paved the hallway. A couple more of Dever's punks appeared on the other side of the cell bars.

"Colonel, Constable Veron would like to see you. We have been asked to retrieve you, nicely. So don't do anything stupid and you won't get hurt. Now turn around and face the wall."

He heard a key clinking against metal and the door opened. Rough hands grabbed him and pushed him out of the cell.

_The Meeting Room_

Teyla had convinced one of the younger men who had taken them captive to give her bandages from their TAC vests. She had used the argument that she doubted the constable would want any of them to die before he had completed whatever plan he had. She had counted on the young man to be more concerned about Veron being angry at him than the validity of what she was saying and it had worked. Not only had he allowed her to take bandages from several vests but he let her take the small packs that she said only had pain medication but in fact had scissors and scalpels in each. Five packs, five scalpels of which she kept one for herself and quietly slipped the other four to some uninjured Marines. She wasn't worried about Ronon, she knew he had a knife or two stashed somewhere.

They had been in the room for over an hour before Ronon woke up, his voice sluggish, "Sheppard?"

Teyla quickly moved to his side, "Please do not move, Ronon. We do not know how badly you are hurt."

"I'm fine. Where's Sheppard?" Ronon asked as he sat up despite Teyla's concerns.

"He is being held somewhere else; they did not bring him here. How do you feel?"

"Like I want to get my hands on Dever and make him pay for all of this, after he tells me where Sheppard is." He spotted Lorne and Isaacs leaning against the wall, their heads bandaged. "They OK?"

"Yes, they have headaches and they suffered cuts from the butt of the long guns but they will be alright. We are missing Johnston, Rodriguez, and Brenner; no one has seen them."

"Do you know what is going on?" Ronon asked. Teyla shook her head no and they both leaned against the wall to wait.

_Dever Veron_

Sheppard was taken to the second floor of the fortress's south side and forcibly ushered into a small but comfortable room. There was a couch, several chairs, and a bed but most importantly, a fireplace that contained a nice warm fire. Sheppard began to shiver as the warm air began to heat up his cold skin.

Dever was sitting at a small desk looking through a very old looking book. He looked up as Sheppard entered the room. "Colonel, welcome. I imagine you are a bit inquisitive about what exactly what is really happening on Glostern. Please colonel, have a seat." Dever got up from the desk and sat in one of the chairs.

Sheppard sat down in the chair directly opposite from Dever, "You might say I am interested in an explanation."

"All of this could have been avoided, Sheppard, if my fool brother had not run to Atlantis for help. We were almost done or would have been if Paut Harben had cooperated."

"You killed Harben and the others." Sheppard's expression was dark; had Dever known Sheppard better, he might have been concerned at Sheppard's darkening mood. "What happened to Harben's wife and daughter?"

"I really don't have any idea; I suspect they are dead by now. You and Dr. McKay were right to ask about the new lock on the basement door. Too bad you didn't pursue it then, colonel, or you might have saved them. When Paut wouldn't tell me what I wanted to know, I killed him and then locked his lovely family in that cold basement. I doubt they survived last night. What a shame, they were beautiful women but business is business." Dever got up and walked to a cupboard where he took down a bottle and a couple of glasses.

"Instead of that sticky sweet hot cider, would you like a taste of the fermented version?" Sheppard shook his head no, Dever smiled as he poured himself a glass, "Suit yourself, Sheppard but this is the good Glostern drink." He returned to his chair and sat down.

"What the hell is going on here, Dever? What would make you kill your own people?" Sheppard's voice was measured and quiet.

"What is going on? I'll tell you what is going on, I am taking back what is right fully ours. You see, colonel, our simple planet actually hides a dirty little secret. Back when this fortress was actually being used to defend the inhabitants, the Glostern people weren't so simple and nice; they were educated and wealthy. Glostern had technology then and space ships, they could move about the galaxy the way the Wraith and the Ancients could. They took advantage of the Wraith threat in the galaxy and followed the Wraith from planet to planet waiting until the cullings were finished. Then, my ancestors would raid the planet for its valuables; taking only precious metals, jewels, art work, historical artifacts, anything that would be of high value and in demand. It was easy, after most cullings the citizens didn't immediately return to their homes or businesses and when they did, they simply thought the Wraith had taken their valuables." He took a sip from his glass and savored the liquid for a moment.

"You have to understand, colonel; this all took place thousands of years ago, when the Wraith threat was new. There were many, many worlds that had accumulated wealth and technology only to be decimated by the Wraith. My people were simply trying to preserve the galaxy's history." He smiled at Sheppard, knowing that the colonel saw through his sarcasm.

Sheppard leaned further back in his chair and stretched out his legs, "So, apparently something happened and all that wealth was lost but you found it didn't you; found it and decided to take it for yourself."

"Why, yes, I did. I found some interesting journals here in the fortress when I was young but I couldn't understand them. I never really knew how important they were until I found a small book in the village tribunal building. There were some old artifacts just sitting on the shelves and one of the village idiots knocked one off onto the stone floor one day. In the middle of the chards of pottery, was a small leather book that had a key to decode something. I recognized the symbols from one of the books I had found so many years before.

When I put them together, I found out that the treasures collected by my ancestors had been split up and given to prominent families who owned large buildings and land where they could safely hide the treasure.

"So you have been terrorizing the descendents of the families who were given the treasure in order to steal it for yourself." Sheppard asked.

"Yes, of course, the Wraith destroyed Glostern as well and all of our technology and wealth was gone. We have spent the last thousands of years in poverty, living off the land. Now, we don't have to live this way.

"You mean, you and your band of merry little men don't have to?"

Dever laughed, "Yes, colonel, me and my 'merry little men'. I for one am tired of living the life of a simple constable. We have found buyers for most of the treasures we have recovered and will find a wonderful planet to live out our lives in luxury, preferably a planet with no blizzards. The only thing left to do now is to get the rest of the treasure off the planet. Jast is so ignorant; he requested my men guard the gate and we were only too happy to oblige. While we were suppose to be trying to determine if the raiders came and left via the gate, we were in fact taking artifact though the gate to our buyers. Worked out quite nicely, until the good citizens of Glostern decided Jast had to do something and he went to you."

"What are you planning to do with us?" Sheppard asked, again his voice measured and quiet.

"Despite what you might think, colonel, I have no wish to harm any of you. I had no intention to harm anyone but the ones who were holding the treasures. I couldn't let them live to tell all the others what we were really looking for. The houses we looted for cover to divert attention from what we really wanted, we didn't kill those people. Unless some of them fought back and my men had to defend themselves."

Sheppard leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, "What about Paut Harben and his family; did they fight back?"

"They were different, Sheppard. Paut was one of the few of these descendents who knew what his ancestors had done. The rest just thought they were family heirlooms that were to be kept secret. But Paut would not tell me where his family had hidden the goods and according to the list, he had some really valuable artifacts; I was angry so I killed him. As for his lovely wife Losa, she turned me down years ago to marry him; now they are together for eternity."

"Look, colonel, I meant it; I have no desire to have Atlantis looking for me because I kill twenty or more of their people. If you do not give us any trouble; then we will wait for the blizzard to break, get ourselves and the rest of the artifacts off the planet and you can go on your way."

Dever motioned to the guards, "Take him back to his cell, he gets to stay there until we are done." Looking back at Sheppard, "I meant it, colonel, behave and nothing will happen to you or your people."

The two men who brought him to Dever took hold of his arms and as they started to lead him out of the room, Dever spoke again, "By the way, colonel, we know that your two doctors are not with the others. We are looking for them and I imagine that they will be joining your people soon. That is, as long as they don't try to resist." He was smiling as his men took Sheppard away.

_The Cellblock_

It seemed even colder on the lower level after being in Dever's warm office and Sheppard was not looking forward to going back in that cold cell. He would rather be in the cold outdoors. As they approached the cell he had been held in, Sheppard pretended to trip on one of the stones and went down. Rolling quickly, he reached down and pulled the knife from his boot; he bounced up and in one motion, ran the knife across the throat of the closest guard. He pushed that guard toward the other one, who fell over as the dead weight of his companion hit him. Sheppard couldn't get to the guy's throat, so he drove the knife up to the hilt in the center of the raider's back. Pulling out the knife, he grabbed their weapons, ripped the hooded cloak from the first man he killed and took off toward the center of the south wing where the door was located.

Sheppard found the door locked with another brand new padlock. He took the butt of one of the long guns and after some pounding, broke through the old wood at the hinges. He knew that his best bet to keep from being found was to get down the steep incline on the south side that Dever had told them about. As soon as he was able to get through the door, he took off running straight toward the slope.

What he didn't realize was that Dever's office was right above the doorway. Dever had heard the door break and had gone to the window to see if he could tell what had caused the noise. The wind had died down and visibility was greatly improved and he could see a dark-haired figure in black running away from the building. Grabbing one of the P-90's he had bought on another planet, he aimed, and fired. How fitting to take the great Colonel Sheppard out with one of his own weapons. The last image he saw of Sheppard was his body lurching forward through the air and then rolling down the slope out of sight. No need to check, he knew Sheppard was dead.


	5. Revelation

**Chapter Five Revelation**

The constant roar of the wind subsided somewhat and the relative quiet was unsettling to the two young corporals who were making their way along the south side of the fortress. They knew if they could hear sounds, so could the bad guys.

Corporal Rodriguez was in the lead; Corporal Brenner was dividing his time between watching what Rodriguez was doing and watching behind him so that no one could sneak up on them. He had just looked back for a second and turned back toward Rodriguez, when he almost ran over his buddy who had stopped abruptly, fist raised.

"What, did you see something?" Brenner whispered.

"No, heard something. Be quiet."

The two men flattened themselves against the building and waited. After a few seconds, they heard a sound like a hammer pounding on wood and both reacted by crouching down into the snow. Rodriguez was about to tell Brenner to move toward the western corner of the building when a man emerged from the fortress running directly toward the steep slope just feet away from the building. They only had a brief second to register that the man was Colonel Sheppard before they heard the pop of P-90 gunfire. The two corporals watched in horror as at least one round hit the colonel in the back. Sheppard had reached the apex of the slope when the bullet struck him. The impact of the bullet threw him forward and he flew through the air for a few feet and then fell to the ground, rolling rapidly down the incline.

"Santa Madre de Dios," Rodriguez whispered, "that was the colonel."

Brenner grabbed his friend's arm and said, "Come on, we have to get down there. The colonel needs help." Pulling Rodriquez with him, Brenner headed for the tree line so that they could stay out of sight as they headed toward the bottom of the slope where they expected to find their C.O.

_The Jumper_

McKay was getting restless. He had stopped pestering the captain every five minutes to see if the radios were working but he was fidgeting enough to make everyone in the jumper nervous. Beckett had called him down once before but it wasn't helping.

"Look, it's going to be dark here soon; we need to do something."

Captain Water's looked over at McKay, "Doctor, instruments are working fairly well and according to the HUD, the wind is dying down and we may be able to get this jumper in the air soon."

McKay jumped up, "That's great; we can go find Sheppard and the others. How soon can we leave, five minutes?"

Beckett left the rear of the jumper and entered the cockpit. "Rodney, the first thing we need to do is get this women to the village and let their friends and families take care of them. They are stable now but they need to be with their loved ones to deal with what has happened to them."

"Beckett, we can't take the time to do that, we have to go after Sheppard."

"Rodney, we will but we canna put these women into harm's way. We are going to take them to the village first."

Behind them, Captain Waters had finally made contact with the other jumper and turned to speak to McKay and Beckett. "Doctors, conditions are getting better in the village, Salem is going to fly to the village and see how things are there. As soon as he gets there, he will let us know. Just sit tight and we will be moving soon."

Beckett slapped Rodney on the back and went back to his patients.

_The Stream_

"Ray, Ray, over here, I found him." Brenner was sloshing through frigid, ankle deep water along the edge of the shallow but swiftly moving stream trying to reach the dark shape that was lying so still in front of him. He could hear Rodriguez coming through the water, his boots making slapping sounds as he picked up his pace.

Brenner's heart was pounding as much from fear as exertion as he knelt down next to the deathly pale colonel. The corporal brushed as much of the snow that covered the colonel after his roll down the hill as he could. Sheppard was lying on his back, legs bent to one side; his left arm was pinned beneath his body, his head bent toward his right shoulder. He was partially lying in the cold water and Brenner knew they had to get the colonel out of the water as soon as they could. But first, he needed to make certain that Colonel Sheppard was alive. Pulling off his heavy gloves, Brenner pressed his fingers down on the colonel's throat, hoping that he was going to feel a pulse.

Rodriguez dropped to his knees next to Brenner, "Broki?" Brenner knew that it was more a plea than a question; Ray was scared that the colonel was gone as much as he was.

Brenner dropped his head as he felt a pulse, weak, but the colonel had a pulse. He thought maybe his heart was pounding more than before. "He's alive, Ray, he's alive." Both corporals took a simultaneous deep breath; knowing that now, they also knew that they had to keep their C.O. that way. Rodriguez spoke first.

"Let's get him out of this water, we gotta find out about that wound and get him warm. We need to immobilize his neck somehow. Let's straighten his legs, then you hold his head really steady, and then we'll move him up the bank, Paul."

Rodriguez gently pulled the colonel's legs straight and as Brenner grasped the colonel's head, Rodriguez straddled his torso and lifted. They slowly walked him out of the water and as they put him down, Ray pulled his left hand from under Sheppard, "Anda pal sirete, Paulie, I found his wound." His glove was covered with blood.

_The Jumper_

Dr. Rodney McKay was getting impatient, again. Salem had checked out their landing area in the village and declared the weather clear enough for Captain Waters to land and then Salem returned to the gate. At the least, they would be able get Losa and Clessa back to Beston. The captain landed the jumper in the town square and Dr.'s Beckett and McKay escorted the women into the Tribunal building. Jast Veron rose from his seat as the other villagers rushed to greet the two women whom they thought had been kidnapped.

Losa Harben waved off her neighbors and stood in front of Jast. "Leader Veron, I have one question for you. Did you know that your brother killed my husband?"

Jast Veron paled and grabbed the table edge, "Dever…Dever killed your husband? I don't understand…why, why would he do that?"

Losa stepped closer to Veron, "Dever wanted to know where the ancient treasures were hidden; the ancient treasure that only the Keepers knew about. I know and my husband knew because both of our families are Keepers. The Keepers have hidden the secret of our ancestors' crimes for all of these years; we thought that the Wraith came as our punishment but the truth is the Wraith came because our ancestors led them here, discovered because they were looting culled worlds. But Dever knew, how did he know, Leader Veron? Only the Leader of the Village Tribunals is told outside of the circle and you are Dever's brother, did you tell him?"

Jast Veron was devastated, "I did not tell him, I did not tell him anything. I promise you, Paut was my friend, and I would have never, ever betrayed him. You are sure it was my brother?"

"I saw it with my own eyes; Dever shot my husband in front of me and in front of his daughter."

The other villagers surrounded Losa and took her to the other side of the room where they had taken Clessa who was still groggy from her ordeal. Dr. Beckett suggested to proprietor, who agreed, that the women should stay at the inn for a couple of days to rest while Atlantis dealt with the problem

McKay sat down next to Veron, "You didn't know?"

"No, Dr. McKay, I did not know and I beg you to help us take care of this. He must be brought to justice; our law givers will know what is appropriate for his crimes."

"We lost contact with Colonel Sheppard and the rest of the team during the worst of the blizzard. They are with Dever and his men heading for the fortress; do you have any idea if Dever might take them somewhere else?"

"No, Dr. McKay, I do not. I am so sorry."

Captain Waters walked in at that moment. "Dr. McKay, Dr. Beckett, we need to go. Lt. Salem is under attack at the gate."

_The Stream  
_

"How bad is it?"

"Bad, broki, he's lost a lot of blood." Rodriguez had grabbed an emergency blanket from his TAC vest and laid it on the ground. "Help me move him onto the blanket, Paulie."

They moved the colonel onto the emergency blanket and Rodriguez started to use his knife to cut Sheppard's shirt off, then realized that they had nothing else to put on him. He slipped the colonel's wet BUD shirt off but left the black turtle neck and thermal undershirt on him, both felt fairly dry. Paulie gently rolled him over on his left side as Rodriguez checked to see where Sheppard was injured.

"Damn, he got hit in the back about four inches above the waist, right side; the only good news is that it's a through and through. Looks like the bullet exited slightly below his waist on his right side; man, he's still bleeding, gotta get this stopped." Rodriguez pulled a couple of quick-clot sponges and pressure bandages out of a pocket of his TAC vest; quickly applying the sponges into the wounds. Then he placed the pressure bandages against the wounds, wrapping the long tendrils of the bandages around the colonel's torso.

Brenner had begun to activate the heating packs and lay them on Sheppard's chest as Rodriguez pulled the colonel's wet boots and socks off and removed the rest of the his wet clothes. They worked as quickly as they could because they both knew they had to get out of the area as soon as possible.

"Ray, we need to get Colonel Sheppard out of this cold as soon as we can. Remember Dever telling us that there were caves along this stream when we were breaking up into teams. Maybe we can find a cave deep enough to build a fire or at least get the colonel out of the direct weather."

"Good thought, broki. Let's get him into a bag and try to get him warmed up and then we can scout for a cave."

Rodriguez reached over to grab the cloak that had been tangled under the colonel using it to dry Sheppard's lower body and wipe some of the blood off of his body. When he was done, he hooked the cloak on a branch that was sticking out over the water and let the rest dangle in the water. He hoped that if the bad guys came to the stream looking for Sheppard they would see the bloody cloak and think that the colonel had been swept downstream.

Brenner had just finished putting his sleeping bag system together when he remembered that there were socks that came with the thermal underwear. He reached in his pack for the extra socks. "Hey, put these on him before we put him in the bag," throwing the socks at Rodriguez.

Ray checked one more time to make certain he wasn't bleeding and then they laid the colonel in the sleeping bag, piled as many warming packs as they could around him, saving some for later, and zipped him up. "OK, broki, I'll stay here with the colonel; you go find us some shelter."

_The Gate_

Captain Waters kept the jumper cloaked as he approached the gate. McKay was in the co-pilot's seat and was monitoring sensors.

"Captain, there are about six life signs surrounding Salem's jumper."

"Lt. Salem, this is Captain Waters, we are cloaked and hovering above you. What's your status?"

"Captain, I'm fine, sir; back in the jumper and she's all closed up."

"What happened?"

"After I returned from the village, I left the jumper to do a perimeter check since the visibility had improved and got shot at by a P-90. Wasn't sure if was a Marine pissed off at me or if it was bandits, sir. Lucky for me, it turned out to be bandits."

"Lucky for you is right, Lieutenant, those Marine's are more dangerous." He grinned at Parker who was smiling. The lieutenant was USAF as was Captain Waters and there was a good-natured rivalry between the Atlantis contingents.

Parker, with a nod to Waters, spoke up, "Lieutenant, would you like for this Marine to take care of the bad guys for you?"

Salem laughed, "You go right ahead, sergeant; let me know if you need any help."

Despite their banter, all five Atlantians geared up to take care of the 'bandits'.

The six men were surrounding the back of Salem's jumper when the ramp descended. Jumping back, they regrouped and cautiously, two of them started up the ramp. They didn't notice the other jumper, ramp end toward them, uncloak behind them. As they turned at the sound of the second ramp opening, they found themselves face to face with Captain Waters, Sgt. Parker, and from behind his bulkhead door of his jumper, Lt. Salem. Dr. McKay and Dr. Beckett emerged from behind the bulkhead door of their jumper. Surrounded, the Glostern men surrendered.

Sgt. Parker pulled some disposable handcuffs from the stash in one of the jumper and he and Salem secured the prisoners while Waters, McKay and Beckett took a quick look around. Near the gate and out of sight of Salem's jumper, they found a large number of boxes which contained what appeared to be ancient artifacts. Once the prisoners were secure, they moved the boxes into the jumpers; the Captain order Salem to return with them to unload the artifacts and then return to the gate.

As they landed in the village square, the winds were beginning to pick up again and visibility was dropping.

_Cave_

Brenner was back in about twenty minutes; he had found a cave that he thought would work. It took an additional twenty minutes for the two corporals to carry the colonel across the shallow stream and east toward the cave.

"Stop, Ray, we're here."

Ray looked around; all he could see was a tall rock wall. "Where is here, Paulie?"

Brenner pointed behind the rocks and Ray peaked around to see an entrance hidden behind the rock outcropping. Although it was a tight squeeze, they managed to get the colonel in without too much trouble. They laid Sheppard down for a moment and Brenner threw a couple of light sticks down the narrow passage to the area where the cave opened up. They picked up their burden and headed toward the larger area.

A couple more light sticks and Ray could see why his buddy chose the cave. "Looks like someone else has used this place to hide, I like this." In the center of the room there was a ring of stones lying side-by-side where someone had built a fire before and against one wall, a few pieces of wood had been left.

"How's he doing?" Brenner asked about the colonel.

"Still with us, pulse is a bit erratic but weak and he's still way too cold, let's get a fire going. I sure would like to get him warm and see if he will wake up."

"Ray, we're going need more wood, that won't be enough. I'm going go see what I can find. That should be enough at least to get a fire going. I don't think with the wind blowing and with us being this far back in the hill that anyone will be able to see or smell a fire. Be back as soon as I can."

Ray threw up his hand to acknowledge Brenner and turned to the task of building a fire. He pulled a paperback that he had been reading from his pack and ripped the pages out he had already read; taking a piece of wood he used his knife to slice off some strips of wood for kindling and using the lighter his grandfather gave me when he enlisted, he lit the paper and wood. Once he had a strong flame going he began to add some larger pieces of wood until he had good fire going. When he could start to feel some warm air around him he pulled the colonel up closer and tried to relax.

_The Fortress_

It was getting colder in the meeting room and Ronon had pulled Teyla close to him spreading his long leather coat over her legs. He pulled a power bar out and told her to eat.

"I am not hungry, Ronon, but thank you. I am worried about Colonel Sheppard."

"Yeah, I know but right now without weapons, we can't do anything."

We at least have some scalpels, Ronon." Teyla laughed half-heartedly. "And I am certain you might have a knife or two, somewhere."

Before Ronon could answer, the door swung open; Dever Veron and several more men walked in. Ronon and Teyla rose and moved toward them but were grabbed by some of Dever's men before they could reach him. Teyla tried to get away from the man holding her but she couldn't. Dever nodded slightly to his henchman and he let go of Teyla.

"Where is Colonel Sheppard?"

"Ah, worried about Sheppard are you? Well, you don't have to anymore, he made a fatal error; he killed two of my men and tried to escape. I shot him in the back, your colonel is dead."

Several of the Marines and Ronon reacted but Major Lorne who had regained consciousness about an hour before, motioned for them to settle down. He walked over to stand next to Teyla.

"What are you planning to do with us?" Lorne asked.

"I plan to let you go, just as I had planned to let the colonel go but he forced my hand. I told him I really didn't want Atlantis hunting us down once we get off this rock but I suppose now that I have killed Sheppard, I can kill again, it really won't matter. So don't give me any reason and you will walk out of here. Try something and you will all die."

Dever turned and walked out of the room.

_Beston_

Rodney was punching buttons on his pad and muttering to himself. He knew the worst of the storm wasn't over and he also knew that he had to tell Waters. Although he would be willing to risk taking the jumper toward the fortress regardless of the weather, he doubted the captain would. He might as well tell the Air Force captain about the weather and get it over with.

He looked around the public house to locate the captain and found him talking to a pretty young woman who had been serving dinner. McKay shook his head and thought to himself, 'what is it with these Air Force flyboys that women just swooned over?' OK, so Waters was a good looking guy, nice not spiky dark hair, tall; as Jeanie, his sister would say, 'Well, he's no John Sheppard' but he seemed to do alright with the ladies. Geeks just don't have a chance but then, there was Jennifer; so he hadn't done badly, he thought, not badly at all.

"Captain Waters, could you come here for a moment?"

The captain walked over and sat down next to Rodney, just as Dr. Beckett came down the stairs and joined them.

Captain Waters asked, "Doctor, how are the ladies doing?"

Beckett shook his head, "Not well, I'm afraid; the shock of what has happened is wearing off and the reality that Paut is dead is beginning to sink in. But they have some family and good friends with them; time and support will help. Fortunately, physically there doesn't seem to be any lingering problems from their ordeal in the basement."

"This whole thing is screwed up, doctors. These seem like good people, why would one of their own want to turn on them, is beyond me."

Beckett shook his head in agreement, "Aye, captain, I know but greed and power always seems to trump kindness with some people." Turning to McKay, "You don't look happy, Rodney. What's wrong?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, the weather is going to be worse tonight than it was most of the day. Winds may reach gusts of up to 80 to 90 mph, more snow and visibility will suck. You don't even have to say it, captain; we aren't going anywhere."

"Any good news, doctor?" the captain asked.

"Actually yes, this storm should break by early morning; the winds should be a lot calmer and the snow clouds gone."

"OK then, we stay put for the night. I am going to have Salem contact Atlantis and let them know what our status is at the moment and that it will be daylight before we will be able to go look for the rest of our people. Once the weather gets better we will take both jumpers to look for the colonel and the rest of teams."

Rodney sighed, "Now all we can do is wait."


	6. Recovery

**Chapter Six Recovery**

_The Cave_

Brenner had returned with an arm load of wood and the fire was now burning hot enough to warm up the immediate area. He and Rodriguez had moved the colonel closer to the fire and unzipped the sleeping bag so that the warm air could reach him. Ray had taken his backpack and elevated the colonel's legs to help keep shock at bay. Then they strung a makeshift clothesline and hung Sheppard's clothes to dry.

"Hungry?" Brenner asked while he looking through the MRE's in his pack.

Rodriguez nodded, "Yeah, broki, I'm hungry; moving around in this snow and cold takes a lot out of a strong boy like me." He flexed his arm to show off a pretty impressive muscle.

Brenner laughed, "You the man, Ray but you know what, you might be fit but you don't have the muscles of that guy." He pointed to Sheppard. "Man, I figured he weighed about 165-170 as skinny as he looks but he has to be 15 to 20 pounds heavier than that. He was a lot tougher to carry than I thought he would be; the colonel has to be all lean muscle."

"Yeah, surprised me, too; he's one tough hombre."

Brenner had pulled out some MRE's and they ate for a few minutes in silence enjoying the warmth and the quiet and most of all the respite from the wind. Rodriquez had rigged a booby trap on the passageway leading to the cave; he piled some rocks a few inches tall on each side of the narrow walkway and tied fishing line about midway down on each side. If someone came that way, they should trip the line and cause the rocks to fall, which would hopefully give them a bit of warning.

Ray looked over at Brenner and smiled; Brenner was a newbie, he had only been on Atlantis for about three months. He still had the wet-behind-the-ears persona but he had shown anything but inexperience during this long day. Rodriquez laughed at himself, 'yeah, Ray, you are such a seasoned veteran, you should talk'. The truth was that Brenner was good kid from the suburbs of Chicago and he was a product of the streets of Queens, NY. He was a punk and hanging with gang members by age twelve; when he was fourteen, not knowing what else to do to change his life, his parents had sent him to live with his grandparents in Luquillo, Puerto Rico.

His grandfather was the principal of the high school and his grandmother was a nurse. He was told from day one how they expected him to behave and that he would not disrespect them as he had his parents. The few times when he had tried to push their limits, he found out what discipline really was and it was not anger or a whipping, it was the look on his grandparents' faces' when he disappointed them. Eventually he got it, the bad boy persona was not one of courage, it was one of cowardice. To be truly courageous was to give a damn about people and make a difference.

He decided to join the Marines after going to college for two years and he had never looked back. Being on Atlantis had given him so much, good friends, good Marines, and a good commanding officer. He looked over at the colonel, still unconscious. Time and time again, Sheppard had shown him, shown all of them that bravery comes from concern and compassion and the need to protect the innocent. He thought Colonel Sheppard was the bravest man he would ever know.

"Hey, Ray, what's on your mind? You look pretty serious there."

"Just thinking, broki; just thinking about our day; it's just another day in the Pegasus galaxy dealing with bad guys." He smiled. "Paulie, what made you want to be a Marine?"

"I come from a long line of Army guys and a couple of girls, two cousins and one is a Ranger. But I always wanted to be a Marine; my dad tells everyone that I wanted to be a Marine just because I loved the _Gomer Pyle _show as a kid. My mother didn't want me to join; she doesn't believe in war but I told her that being a Marine was about keeping wars from happening and if they did happen, protecting the good guys and taking care of the bad guys. Not sure she ever believed me but she supports me. I had to go to college first though, her only condition." Brenner stretched out his legs and said, "I never expected to be serving in another galaxy. You could have blown me over with a feather when I got the assignment to the SGC and found out what it was; then on to the Atlantis base. I tell you one thing; I don't want to go back."

Hey, broki, how did you get a name like Pauli?

"My younger sister started calling me that when she was three and it stuck. My mom was a fan of U2 and I was born in July of '85 just after she saw the Live Aid Concert on TV, so my name is Paul David Brenner after Paul Hewson, better known as Bono, and David Evans, The Edge. How bout you? Why did you get named Ramon?"

Ray laughed, "My momma was, and still is, a fan of the Puerto Rican actor, Esai Morales. She had seen him in some movie, this hot Latin lover type and wanted to name me Esai. My father would not hear of it, he thought it was a sissy name but my mother got her way. I was named Ramon Esai Rodriguez and my mother always calls me Ramon Esai. Parents can be a real trip, broki."

"Yes, they can. So Ramon Esai, I'll take the first watch, you can relieve me in three hours. Get some sleep."

Brenner had spent the first two and a half hours of his watch walking around the cave to keep his muscles loose and keeping the fire going. He had taken a quick trip down to the cave opening, mindful of Ray's booby trap, to check the weather and wished he hadn't done that, the wind was raging and the snow blowing. A face full of snow made him decided he liked the warmth of the cave much better.

He had checked the colonel's pulse so often that he was getting embarrassed for being such a scaredy cat. It wasn't that he hadn't been around injured soldiers before, his first tour of duty was in Iraq and he had seen plenty of injury and death. It was just that he liked his current C.O. more than any other commanding officer he had served under, not that there was that many. But Colonel Sheppard was different, he didn't treat them like collateral to be used and tossed, he treated the men and women in his command like people, people he cared about. He laughed with them, worked beside them regardless of what the duty was and would give his life for any of them. They all knew that.

Lt. Stackhouse, his team leader who had been on Atlantis from the beginning, told him about the black mark on the colonel's record and the controversy around Sheppard when he was first assigned to Atlantis. The fact that the colonel had disobeyed orders in order to save three soldiers that were caught behind enemy lines only proved what they knew about him, that he would risk his life to save them. To the powers to be, however, he had still disobeyed orders. But Stackhouse also told him how it didn't take long for that black mark to be forgotten after word of what this man had done so many occasions to save Atlantis began to reach Earth. The colonel had become something of a legend among the airmen and the Marines and the brass, if they would only admit it.

When he heard a moan, he thought it was Rodriguez waking up. He looked over at the sleeping bag that held the corporal and realized he wasn't waking up. That only left one other person, he spun around and Colonel Sheppard gave him a wan smile.

"Corporal, I take it, I'm not dead." His voice was weak but he was speaking, that was music to the corporal's ears.

"Yes, sir; you are most definitely alive.' He passed the snoring Ray as he headed for the colonel and kicked his sleeping bag, "Ray, get up; the colonel's awake."

Ray jumped up so fast at the news that he tripped getting out of the bag and ended up crawling over to the colonel. "Hey, colonel, welcome back."

"Rodriguez, where the hell am I?" Sheppard started to rise up but a wave of pain shot through him and he thought better of it.

"Easy, colonel; don't try to sit up just yet. We are in a cave near the stream that runs below the fortress. Do you remember what happened to you?"

"Vaguely, I had gotten away from Dever's men and I was running out the door, heading to the stream. Then I felt something hit my back and that's the last I remember."

Brenner moved his backpack under the colonel's head so that he could sit up a bit. "Sir, is that comfortable?"

"Not too bad, Brenner; thirsty…"

"Colonel, we don't know how badly you're injured; so I really don't think you should drink a lot of water. How bout a sip to wet your mouth and throat?" Rodriguez had his canteen ready for Sheppard to take a sip. He held the canteen up to Sheppard's mouth and tipped it so that the colonel could take a drink.

"Thanks." Sheppard took a fairly deep breath and felt the pain in his side. "Got hit in the back?"

"Colonel, you took a round in the back and it exited on your right side. We think the weapon sounded like a P-90. After you got hit, you went airborne for a few seconds, then fell to the snow, and rolled down the incline toward the stream. Pauli and I were scouting the south side of the fortress; we got lucky that we saw you, sir. We took off toward the stream, found you lying along the edge of the water, and got you patched up as best we could. Brenner remembered there were caves in the area and found this one. It was big enough to build a fire in and would give us some protection form the storm."

Sheppard winced and tried to stifle a groan but didn't quite manage to do so. Rodriquez looked at Brenner and mouthed the word 'morphine' to him; Brenner got up and grabbed Rodriguez's backpack. He rummaged for the hard case that held the pre-measured morphine syringes; when he found it he handed it to Rodriquez.

"Colonel, I think we need to give you something for the pain."

"No, not yet. I need to know what's going on. Like, how come you guys are here; did you escape from Dever's men? What happen to Johnston? Tell me everything."

_Beston_

Carson Beckett was restless; he had tried to sleep but he had only dozed for a couple of hours. He thought perhaps if he walked around he might get sleepy. Maybe he could find some of that really good hot cider; he was finding he was quite enjoying the sweet, spicy fruit flavor. He got up, dressed, and headed downstairs. When he reached the bottom of the steps, he wasn't surprised to find Rodney sitting at a table next to the fire.

"Rodney, couldn't sleep?"

Rodney looked away from the fire, "No, I couldn't and I suppose you couldn't either."

"Any of that cider around?"

"Yeah, Captain Waters and Sgt. Parker are splitting watch tonight and one of the servers left a big pitcher of it on a stove in the kitchen. Captain Waters apparently likes the cider a lot and she seemed to like the captain. She told him that everyone should just help themselves."

"Want a cuppa?" Rodney shook his head to indicate yes and turned back to look at the fire.

When Beckett came back from the kitchen, Rodney hadn't moved. He sat the mugs down and took a seat across from McKay.

"So, what's on your mind, Rodney?"

"Just frustrated that we can't find out what is going on. I hate this weather. I hate not knowing what's happening with Sheppard, Teyla, Ronon and all of them. I hate knowing that Dever's is a bad guy and we don't know what he has done to the team. I hate this."

"Rodney, there is nothing you can do right now, you need to let the frustration go. We are here because John ordered us here; he would rather that we found Losa and her daughter than be with them. We did what we were supposed to do. Tomorrow when the weather clears, we will find him, we'll find all of them."

"What if it's too late, Carson; what if it's too late."

"Rodney, you need to have faith in the colonel and the others. They are smart and savvy; they are not going give up. We know the colonel already had suspicions about the constable. You've known the colonel as long as I have, he'll figure this out."

Rodney took a drink from his cider and looked at Carson, "I know Sheppard has a way of getting out of things that no normal mortal can but he usually gets hurt in the process. One of these days Carson, his mortality is going to catch up with him."

"Aye, but I think the colonel has a few of his nine plus lives yet, Rodney."

_The Cave_

Rodriguez had taken over the watch and was sitting near the cave entrance still in the circle of warmth from the fire. It would be daylight in about an hour and he had orders to awaken the colonel then. He didn't think it was a good idea but he was not going to disobey; he might however, fudge the time for the sun to rise just a bit.

After he and Brenner filled the colonel in on what they knew about the events of the day before, Sheppard had seemed quite pleased that he had been suspicious about what was going on and how he acted on his gut feelings. He had been embarrassed and had blushed a bit as the colonel told him that he had good instincts. Paulie had smacked him in the arm and he was pretty certain that he was going to be ribbed about the whole thing once they got back to Atlantis.

Once he was up to date on what the corporals knew, Sheppard had agreed to take no more than a half dose of morphine and had gone back to sleep. Rodriguez was at least glad that his grandmother had taught him trauma first aid when he decided to join the Marines. He had checked the colonel's wounds and there was no evidence of bleeding; he couldn't find signs of internal bleeding and the colonel did not have a fever. Maybe they had gotten lucky and the colonel had dodged the bullet so to speak.

Rodriguez sat quietly for another half-hour watching over his two charges while they slept and then decided to go check on the weather. He walked down the cold passageway to the cave opening. It was still snowing but the wind had died down and the sky was getting lighter. He figured he would wake up Brenner, get organized and then wake the colonel up. They had to get away from the area and hopefully, if the storm had died down, they would be able to radio for help.

_The Fortress_

Dever Veron was standing looking out the window toward the hill leading to the river, at first light he had sent a couple of his men out to make certain that Sheppard was dead. They had returned with the news that they had found a cloak with a lot of blood on it snagged on a tree. With the new snowfall, they couldn't tell if Sheppard had survived. They speculated that he had either gotten out of the area on his own power or if he had fallen into the swiftly moving stream, which was being pushed by the high winds, he may have been washed away.

Not finding Sheppard's body was an annoyance but Dever was certain that the Atlantis commander didn't survive. Besides, injured, Sheppard wouldn't be much of a threat against his men, especially since he had most of the Atlantis personnel locked up in the meeting hall. No, it was time to leave; Dracus and the others should have gotten most of the artifacts though the gate by now and they were taking the rest with them today. In a few short hours, he would be off this depressing, forsaken world and on his way to living the good life.

Murdos, one of the militiamen who had been part of the planning when they decided to steal the artifacts, entered his office. "Devers, the weather has really calmed down and everything is loaded up. Turven sent word that he and his crew are heading out from the farm to get the artifacts they have to the gate; they should be there in about two hours. We loaded up all that winter gear that the Atlantians had with them as well, might come in handy or we can sell it or trade it."

"Good idea. Make sure all of our men have left the meeting room and have Brunen check the door to make certain it's secure but don't tell those people we are leaving. Let's get going, have someone come up and get this trunk for me," he tapped a small leather trunk with his foot. He then picked up Sheppard's leather coat and slipped it on; a bit big in the shoulders for him, he thought but it would do. A remembrance that he defeated the military leader of Atlantis; a simple constable from a poor planet and he defeated Atlantis, the beginning of a legend. He left his fortress hideout and never looked back.


	7. Retribution

**Quick Note: **Thank you to all of you who have let me know that you are having fun with this story. I love these corporals and I am glad you do as well. Again, thank you very much. Hope you enjoy the last two chapters.

The site had upload problems this evening, so I am posting the last two chapters about four hours later than I intended. Sorry.

**Chapter Seven Retribution**

_The Cave_

"Colonel, are you sure you can make it?" Brenner certainly didn't think so but he knew better than to push too much. He had helped Sheppard stand so he could get dressed and he was pretty wobbly when he first tried. He sat down pretty quickly and leaned against the wall, his breath coming in short, shallow bursts.

"Just need to let the dizziness calm down; then I'll be ok." Sheppard leaned his head back against the rock wall and closed his eyes. Even with the corporals' help, getting dressed had taken a lot out of him. He was nauseated but he thought it was from the earlier shot; he had decided against anymore morphine and had risked taking three ibuprofen capsules. He needed his head clear; he'd get enough of the good stuff once Beckett and Keller got their hands on him.

Rodriguez had gotten Brenner up first and policed the cave; they had burned the MRE containers and gotten everything repacked with the exception of Sheppard's sleeping bag, his clothes, and fresh medical supplies to re-bandage his wounds. They weren't going to let the fire burn down until they had Sheppard ready to leave.

"Colonel, the good thing is that it looks to me like the gunshot didn't hit anything vital. I think if it had nicked the bowel, you might have a fever by now. I'm no doc but I think you got lucky. However, I will defer to Dr. Keller." Ray smiled at him after he had taken a look at the colonel's bandages.

"Knowing Keller and Beckett, smart move, corporal," Sheppard shifted a bit and took a deep breath.

"Sir, I didn't change the bandages since it doesn't look like you've had any addition bleeding, I just added a couple on top of both wounds, more for protection than anything, in case you run into a branch or something. I didn't want to risk reopening either wound by removing those bandages. But you need to be careful out there and not try to move too quickly; let us help. Getting back up that hill to the path is not going to be an easy climb, it's pretty steep. If it's too much for you, we'll build a travois to get you back to the main road." Ray had started to smother the fire as he was talking.

"Rodriguez, have you tried to reach the jumpers?"

"Yes, sir; but the winds were fairly strong this morning, just no where near what they were yesterday and last night. I'll keep trying once we get outside."

"You guys ready?" Sheppard tried to stand up on his own but he didn't get very far. Brenner who was closer grabbed him before he fell back to the ground.

"Hey, colonel, take it easy. Don't try to do this on your own, sir." Brenner got Sheppard on his feet and leaning against the wall.

"Ray, hand me the sleeping bags." Rodriguez looked over at the bags that were lying on the ground next to Brenner's K-Bar.

"Paulie, I thought you got everything packed?"

"I did but Colonel Sheppard doesn't have a coat or a knit cap so I decided to improvise." As he took the bags and knife from Rodriguez, he laughed. "Colonel, you may be setting a new trend."

Brenner had cut open the bottom of the twin sleeping bag system and used duct tape to 'hem' the fabric and he made narrow slits on the sides at approximately hand level using the tape to seal the edges on each of the bags. He unzipped the bags and they helped the colonel step in and get his arms into the side slits.

"Colonel, I taped the side slits in each bag separately since you don't have gloves so that you can still keep your arms and hands warm but you won't feel so confined. Brenner pulled the built in hood over Sheppard's head, pulling the drawstring around his face.

"Sorry, sir; it's probably going to mess up your hair." Brenner grinned. "But I'm thinking you'll at least be warm."

"You have been hanging around Dr. McKay haven't you, corporal."

"Not anymore than I have to, sir."

Rodriguez was checking the fire to make certain it had gone out and laughed, "Sir, some of us don't like hanging around the geeks; they make me nervous."

"I get that. OK, boys, get your gear and let's go." The corporals slipped their backpacks on and with Sheppard leaning on Brenner, they followed Rodriguez down the passage way.

On the way, Rodriguez kicked the rocks down on the booby trap he had placed and Sheppard chuckled. "You two must have watched a lot of _MacGyver_ when you were kids."

"Sure did, sir. It was my favorite show. Now, Pauli, his was _Gomer Pyle_." Rodriguez chuckled.

"Hey, I loved _MacGyver_; it was my dad who said I liked _Gomer Pyle_ because I joined the Marines instead of the army like the rest of my family."

They reached the opening and made their way out into the edge of the stream. Rodriguez tried the radio but they still could not make contact with the jumpers.

"Colonel, we should be back at the spot where we found you in about twenty minutes, then I imagine that it will take us about another fifteen or twenty minutes to get to the top of the hill. But you stop us if you get too tired and we will rest for a bit."

Sheppard nodded and they began to walk down the edge of the stream. The water was moving against them but not as rapidly as it had the night before and they made decent time. Brenner was supporting the colonel because he was taller than Rodriguez, which made it easier for Sheppard to lean on him and they were able to keep up a decent pace despite the colonel's injury.

The snow was blowing in the air from the moderate winds that rustled the tree branches. It took them just over twenty minutes to get back to the spot where they found Sheppard.

"Sir, this is where we found you," Brenner informed Sheppard.

"I left that cloak you must have grabbed and I snagged it on this branch," Rodriguez pointed to a now broken branch. "I used it to wipe the blood off of you and then left it here, hoping that if they came looking for you these guys would think you had been washed down stream. However, the branch is broken and the cloak is lying over there. It would be covered with snow if this had happened last night. Someone was here this morning." Rodriguez pulled up his P-90.

Brenner pulled out his sidearm and handed it to the colonel. "You might need this, sir."

Rodriguez looked at Sheppard, "If you are OK, sir; we'll keep going, only a few minutes to the tree line that leads up the hill to the path opening." Sheppard motioned for him to go on and they headed for the covered way up to the fortress.

_The Path_

The climb up the hill had been difficult for Sheppard and Brenner. The colonel was in pain, Brenner could see it in his face, but he wouldn't stop. When they reached the path, Brenner grabbed the colonel's arm and he pointed to the ground.

"Sir, you need to rest and we need to check your wounds, that climb was brutal and I don't want you to start bleeding again." When Sheppard didn't argue with him, he knew that the colonel was hurting. He leaned his C.O. against a tree and grabbed an emergency blanket from his pack; spreading the silver blanket on the ground, he eased the colonel down.

Kneeling down next to Sheppard, Brenner grabbed his canteen, "Here, sir, take a small sip." As he held the canteen out, he got Rodriguez's attention.

"Ray, the colonel needs to rest and we need to check his wounds. That climb was a real struggle for him. Why don't you do that and while he's resting, I'm going to go check on Sgt. Johnston. I'm worried about him. He's not far from here; I can be there and back in fifteen minutes."

"Go, I'll take care of the colonel."

_Beston_

"Rodney, calm down; we are going to be leaving shortly. Captain Waters will be finished with Woolsey and Teldy in a moment."

"We could be in the air while he's doing that."

"Rodney, give the man a break."

Captain Waters and Sgt Peters were in the cockpit of the jumper. Lt. Salem had brought his jumper from the gate and was on the ground next to them.

"OK…doctors', we're ready to go. The plan is that if we haven't made contact with Atlantis in two hours, the cavalry is coming."

Captain Waters lifted the jumper off the ground and headed toward the fortress with Lt. Salem on his six. Finally, Rodney was satisfied.

_The Path_

Rodriguez was worried, he knew that Sheppard had lost a lot of blood initially and he was extremely fatigued at the moment but at least, it didn't appear that his wounds were bleeding again. He wondered if he should try to get the colonel to eat a power bar but he was really worried about having him eat if he did have a nicked intestine. He really wished Dr. Beckett were with them; then this wouldn't be on his shoulders. This man was too important to leave his care to a lowly corporal.

"Are you warm enough, Colonel Sheppard?"

"Yeah, just tired," his eyes were closed.

"Hey, you need to keep your hands inside the bag," as he tucked Sheppard's hands inside the bag. He vowed to never go anywhere without an extra set of gloves again. "Colonel, Brenner has gone to check on Sgt. Johnston and he should be back shortly. Maybe we should get you under cover, so that we can scout out the fortress."

"No, going with you; just need to rest for a few minutes. Try the radio again."

"Yes, sir," Rodriguez tried again but static was all they could hear. He was getting frustrated but he kept trying every couple of minutes. He looked at his watch; Brenner had been gone just over sixteen minutes. He should be returning shortly and Ray hoped with news that Johnston was OK.

It was another few minutes before Ray heard someone coming; he saw Brenner emerged from the path toward the little grove of trees and bushes where they were taking cover. Brenner gave him thumbs up and he breathed a little easier once he knew Johnston was alright. He had turned to tell the colonel when the crackle of the radio startled them.

"Colonel Sheppard, this is Waters, come in, please. Colonel, this is Captain Waters, please answer."

Rodriguez grabbed the radio and wanted to shout to the heavens but he remained calm, "Captain Waters, Corporal Rodriguez here. We're glad to hear you, sir. I'm with Colonel Sheppard and Corporal Brenner. Sir, the colonel has been shot but is stable; the rest of the team is being held in the fortress by Dever and his gang. Also, Sgt. Johnston has a broken leg and a stab wound but he is stable as well and is hidden along the path."

"Repeat corporal, did you say the colonel's been shot?"

Before Rodriguez could answer, Dr. Beckett's voice came from the radio. "Son, tell me where the colonel's been shot and the extent of Sgt. Johnston's injuries."

"Doctor, the colonel was hit in the back about four inches above his waist on the right; the bullet exited just below his waist on his right side. He lost a lot of blood but we applied the clotting pads and pressure bandages and found shelter to get him out of the weather last night. He hasn't been bleeding from the wounds and I don't think that he has any internal bleeding but he is in a lot of pain. As for Sgt. Johnston, he was stabbed by one of Dever's men because he overheard what they were up to. The stab wound was superficial but did bleed a bit; his leg was broken by being hit with the butt of one of those long guns. We splinted his leg, dressed his wounds; got him in a sleeping bag, loaded him up with warmers, food, water and ammunition. Brenner just came back from checking on him and he is alright."

"Excellent, corporal; you and Cpl. Brenner have done well."

The captain came back on, "Corporal, do you know anything about the rest of the team other than they are being held in the fortress? We are picking up several life signs toward the front of the building but no idea who they are."

"No, sir; only that they are being held there but I don't know where."

Sheppard motioned for the radio, "Captain, I think they are on the north side of the building and are being held together. Where are you?"

"Colonel, we are hovering right above the path where it ends at the fortress; we have three life signs right underneath us. I imagine that would be you guys. Colonel, I am going to leave the jumper cloaked and put it down with the ramp toward you. Corporals, get ready to bring the colonel on board."

"Yes, sir."

Brenner and Rodriguez helped the colonel to his feet. Waters landed the jumper about twenty feet from them and as the ramp descended they headed directly for the cloaked ship; hidden from anyone who might be watching from the fortress.

_The Meeting Room_

Lorne was pacing; he had gotten some sleep and felt much better but he was really frustrated. Their guards had left during the night and they had not seen any of them since; Lorne was convinced that something was up. They had attempted to get the double doors open without any success; the doors were simply too heavy and they finally gave up. The only good thing was that the wind had died down and it wasn't quite as cold as it had been.

"Major Lorne, are you alright?" Teyla had been checking on Isaacs who had been hit harder than Lorne and was still groggy.

Yeah, I'm fine just frustrated. How's Nate?" Lorne pointed to Captain Isaacs.

"I believe that he has a concussion but how badly he is hurt I do not know. He is dizzy, has a headache, and is nauseated."

"Thanks for keeping an eye on him for me, Teyla."

Teyla started to reply when they heard a loud voice calling to them from the doorway. "Major Lorne, are you in there?"

Lorne looked at Teyla, "That's Lt. Salem." Running toward the door, "It's us, Salem; get us out of here!"

"Stand back, sir. We are going to blow the door."

Lorne motioned for everyone to move away from the heavy wooden double doors. A minute later, a small explosion knocked one side of the door down and Salem, Peters, Brenner and Rodriguez burst through the opening.

"Come, on; let's get out of here." Salem yelled.

"Salem, are there any of Dever's men around?" Lorne asked as he took the weapon Salem was holding out to him.

"No, sir, sensors only showed your group in this location. The raiders are gone."

Ronon and Teyla were at Lorne's side, "What about Sheppard?" Ronon asked.

"The colonel is aboard one of the jumpers, sir. He's been wounded but seems stable."

"Where is he?"

Salem pointed toward the west, "The jumpers are parked on the west side of the fortress." Ronon moved past Lorne at a dead run, Teyla right behind him.

When they reached the jumpers, they were uncloaked and both ramps were closed. Teyla ran to the front of one of the jumpers, it was empty. "It's the other one." Ronon went to the front of that jumper and got Captain Waters attention. The ramp began to lower and Teyla was the first on board.

Beckett turned to her, "Teyla, are you alright?"

"Yes, how is Colonel Sheppard."

"I'm fine, Teyla." Beckett stepped away and revealed Sheppard sitting on the jumper bench, McKay next to him. "Everyone OK?"

"Captain Isaacs has a possible concussion and Major Lorne was struck with a gun as well, he has a cut on his head but I think he is fine; everyone else is just cold." Teyla looked over at Beckett who murmured he would be back and left the jumper to check on the two injured men.

Ronon sat down across from Sheppard, "So what happened?"

"Dever had me in a cell on the south side. I had a chat with him and he told me what he was really up to. When his men took me back to the cell, I sort of eliminated them," he gave Ronon a lopsided grin, "by using the knife I had hidden in my boot and made it out the south door; just about got away with it but somebody shot me in the back."

Ronon interjected, "Dever, he's the one who shot you; he told us you were dead."

"Dever, I should have known. After I was hit, I rolled down the hill into the stream and would be dead if it weren't for Brenner and Rodriguez; they found me. We spent the night in a nice, warm cave and then climbed up the hill back here. That's when the jumpers showed up." Sheppard leaned back and closed his eyes.

"It is good to know that Brenner and Rodriguez are alright; colonel, do you know anything about Sgt. Johnston?" Teyla asked.

McKay answered, "He has a broken leg which the corporals fixed up and they left him on the path."

"Left him? Where is he, I'll go get him." Ronon was already on his feet; the big sergeant was one of Ronon's favorites.

Sheppard smiled, "Calm down, Chewie; the sergeant is fine. Brenner checked on him when we first got up here. They gave him first aid and got him into the sleeping bags. Captain Waters is going to send some Marines to get him now that you guys are safe."

McKay looked at Sheppard, his friend was pale and in pain. He thought some good news would help, "Sheppard, you were right about the basement at the Harben house. We found Losa and her daughter there."

Sheppard's head snapped around toward Rodney, the concern evident on his face. "Dever told me he left them there; he said they would be dead before anyone found them."

"They are alive, John; but they wouldn't have been if you hadn't had us stay there to check that basement out. We got them to the inn and they are with family now. Dr. Beckett said medically they were fine, once they got warm."

Sheppard emitted a deep sigh, "Good news, I was really afraid they were dead."

Teyla knelt in front of the colonel, "Again, John, you did not allow that to happen."

Captain Waters had left the jumper when Teyla and Ronon boarded and he returned with news that Marines had been sent to recover Sgt. Johnston and he would be transported back to Atlantis on the other jumper.

"No, captain, no one is returning to Atlantis yet. Dever and his men have not been gone long from here and you say you didn't see any life signs heading back the way we came?

"No, sir, just what we now know was Sgt. Johnston; we weren't certain if that life sign was one of us or one of them."

"Captain, have Salem do a recon down that path that leads east from here. Lorne said that it ended in the middle of a field, didn't go all the way to a road. I have a feeling that Dever's headed that way. They probably went to get the rest of the stuff they looted. There's a road past that point somewhere. Salem needs to follow it to find where they are and how much time we have before they can reach the gate."

"Yes, sir." Captain Waters tapped his COM, "Major Lorne and Lt. Salem; please meet me behind my jumper. I have orders from Colonel Sheppard." As Waters left the jumper, he raised the ramp to keep the cold out.

McKay stood up, "What the hell do you think you're doing? You need to get back to Atlantis; damn it, you got shot in the back."

"Rodney, I am not going anywhere until we take care of Dever. He is not going to get away with this."

Rodney was about to say something else but Teyla shook her head. "Rodney, the colonel is right. We cannot go through the gate; Dever's may have people watching. If Dever's thinks we are still here locked in the fortress and that John is dead, he will let his guard down and will not expect us. Besides, Dr. Beckett said that the colonel is stable. He needs treatment and rest but right now, he is OK."

As they waited for Salem to report, Sheppard answered their questions about the events since he was captured. However, only after Teyla made him lie down on the bench. Dr. Beckett had started an IV to help increase the colonel's blood pressure after the blood he had lost. Teyla was giving him small sips of water, as well.

"These two young Marines have done well, colonel. We are most thankful that they realized something was going on." Teyla was arranging a blanket over Sheppard. "They were also quite resourceful in keeping you warm. The use of the sleeping bags as a coat was ingenious."

"Yeah, I wouldn't be here if it weren't for them and neither would Johnston."

Rodney told them about the men that they had captured at the gate and all of the artifacts they had recovered. As he finished, Lorne, Waters, and Salem entered the jumper from their reconnaissance mission.

"Major, lieutenant, good to see you." Sheppard sat up to Teyla's protest.

"You, too sir," Lorne answered as Salem nodded to his C.O. Lorne continued, "You were right, colonel. We found six life signs just coming off the path and another eight in what might be a barn behind a house that sits on that other road. We took a quick trip along that road and found that it intersects with the road that runs in front of the Harben house. Looks like the quickest way back to the gate from where they are. After that, we flew back over the area where we first found them. The life signs were traveling along the road: Salem took the jumper lower for a closer look and it appears that they have a wagon being pulled by some horse like things. Sir, I think it will take at least two hours to get to the gate from where they are since the storm has died down.

"Have you recovered Johnston?" Lorne nodded yes and Sheppard continues. "Ok, I have an idea we need to discuss; let's get everyone loaded up and major, Brenner and Rodriguez are to ride with me."


	8. Friends

**Chapter Eight Friends**

It was nearly two and a half hours before Dever and his group arrived at the gate. They unloaded the cart which contained about thirty boxes and a lot of large cloth sacks. Once they had unloaded the cargo near the gate, one of Dever's men punched an address into the DHD and nothing happened.

Dever strode over to the DHD, yelling at his minion, "What did you do? Did you put the address in correctly?" The man assured Dever he had but Dever didn't believe him. He pushed the man out of the way and entered the gate address himself. Again, nothing happened.

Dever was livid; he pushed one of his men, knocking him to the ground. "The gate has been sabotaged; those Atlantians have done something to it. Killing Sheppard wasn't enough; I should have killed them all." He stopped ranting as he heard the sound of a ramp descending, as he tuned toward the noise, he heard a voice he didn't expect to hear.

"Dever, I would like my jacket back."

"You, Sheppard, you did this; you broke the gate."

"No, didn't break it; just took the control crystal out. Doesn't look like you are going to get to leave Glostern any time soon." Sheppard was walking down the ramp on his own power but Ronon and Brenner were slightly behind and on each side of him.

Dever men's had raised their weapons, most of them the P-90's they had taken from the teams or Dever's had purchased off-world.

"You are outmanned and outgunned, Sheppard. Give us the crystal and we'll spare your lives."

"Like you spared the lives of your fellow Glosterns, Dever." Jast Veron walked out of the jumper past Sheppard. "Yes, I know everything; Losa and her daughter are alive, these good people saved them. She told me about your plot to take all of the artifacts that we have kept hidden all these years for yourself. You knew that the Keepers were deciding how to return the artifacts to the worlds they were taken from now that the threat of the Wraith is gone. How could you?"

"How could I? You might be content to live on this dull world, living such shallow little lives but not me. I want off this world and rid of you, my dear, older brother. I am sick of your kindness and your compliance. I want to live."

"I never realized how unhappy you have been; this is all we have ever known and I thought it was enough for us. I am sorry that I didn't help you."

"You sanctimonious bastard, don't pity me; pity yourself." Dever pointed his weapon at his brother, "Sheppard put that crystal back or I will kill my brother and then I will kill you and this time I will make certain that you die."

"Not going to happen, Dever. It's over; you need to realize that." Sheppard looked up above the gate and nodded; three other jumpers materialized over their heads. When they arrived at the gate earlier and realized that there were no life signs near the gate, Sheppard had contacted Atlantis and Teldy led two jumpers and four more teams to their aid.

As Dever looked up at the jumpers, his men realized that they had no chance and began to put down their weapons. Dever turned back to his brother and Sheppard, "Now, you die."

He fired at Jast but Ronon tackled the leader and rolled him out of the way; the bullet ricocheted off the jumper into the dirt. Dever then turned toward Sheppard and fired but Brenner was quicker, he threw himself in front of the colonel. A shot rang out from behind them and Dever fell, a bullet in the center of his forehead.

From a perch near the top of an evergreen tree, expert sniper Ramon Esai Rodriguez was grinning, he had taken Dever out. Then he realized that Sheppard was kneeling on the ground, holding Brenner in his arms. Pauli had been hit in the chest with the shot Dever fired at Sheppard. His friend was still, his face pale, and there was a lot of blood.

_Atlantis_

He wondered exactly when the sounds of the monitors and machines in the infirmary had become so comforting to him. He felt quite content in the clean, soft sheets, the low lights, and antiseptic smells that surrounded him. Then he smiled to himself; he was pretty certain that the contentment was because of some really good drugs.

Fighting his way out of the dark fog, he felt the familiar soothing voice of Atlantis in his head helping him regain consciousness. As his head cleared, he raised up a bit to see if he was alone; of course, he wasn't. Ronon was sitting quietly next to foot of his bed; Rodney was in a chair next to him, his pad open, always working; Teyla was sitting on the bed behind Rodney, Torren asleep next to her. His team, his friends; yeah, he was content. Then he remembered.

"Rodney…" He moved his hand to get Rodney's attention.

Rodney nearly dropped his pad as he jumped up, "Sheppard, you're awake."

"No, Rodney, I'm asleep and you're dreaming," the colonel laid his head back onto the pillow.

"Always the funny man," Rodney answered but he was smiling.

"Colonel, how do you feel?" Teyla had jumped down from the bed but kept her hand on Torren.

"Felt pretty good when I first woke up but then I remembered. How's Brenner."

There was hesitation before anyone spoke and Sheppard felt his heart seize; that kid could not be dead but he asked anyway, "What, is he gone?" Even he could hear the fear in his voice.

Teyla spoke quickly, "He is alive, John; but has been in surgery for several hours. He is badly injured and Dr. Keller is very concerned. She and Dr. Beckett have been working on him since we returned."

Sheppard took a deep breath, "Where is Rodriguez?"

Ronon, who had been standing next to Sheppard's bed, replied, "He's in the waiting room."

"Get him for me." Ronon left to get the corporal.

"John, you are going to be fine. Dr. Beckett gave you some drugs to help you sleep and to help with the pain before they checked you out. He scanned your wounds and said that you were very lucky; the bullet did not hit any organs or major vessels. He redressed your wounds and is giving you an IV to replenish fluids. You lost quite of bit of blood before the corporals got to you but they did a great job of taking care of you."

"Yeah, they did. How is Johnston?"

"He is fine; Dr. Beckett set his leg and is keeping him overnight. His stab wound was not bad and he will heal quickly. It appears that our young corporals took very good care of him as well."

Ronon came back with a very solemn Rodriguez tagging along behind. He approached Sheppard's bed. "Colonel, how you doing, sir."

"I'm here, corporal, here because you and Brenner saved my life, not once, but twice. Thank you."

"It was Pauli, sir; he's the one who saved your life." Rodriguez was looking down at the floor as if he could not bear to meet the colonel's eyes.

"Corporal Rodriguez, look at me when I am talking to you." Sheppard realized he was going to have to play C.O. with this broken young man.

Rodriguez looked his C.O. in the eyes, "Sorry, sir; I'm a little distracted, sir."

Sheppard reached out his hand and Rodriquez grabbed it, mindful of the pulse-oximeter on the colonel's finger. "Rodriguez, Brenner's a tough guy; he's going pull through. You have to believe that."

"I am trying to, sir but I have never had a friend that I was this close to before. Pauli's a great guy and a damn fine Marine, sir. We can't lose him."

"He has the best doctor's and nurses in two galaxies, corporal. He'll make it. Now, get a chair; you're waiting with us."

Rodriguez never stopped looking at the colonel even though tears were welling in his eyes. He was embarrassed, Marine's didn't cry but for some reason, he was ok with showing his emotions to his C.O. He knew Sheppard understood; the colonel might not be able to express his feelings any better than he could but they both knew the feelings were inside them. He turned to get a chair and found that Ronon had already placed an empty chair next to his. The young corporal sat down and joined the vigil with Sheppard's team.

It was two more hours before Dr. Keller came out of surgery and found Rodriquez sitting in a chair next to Sheppard's bed, Torren in his lap playing quietly with a toy truck. Teyla and McKay had gone to get them food. Ronon had been asleep but he woke instantly when Keller walked up. Sheppard had fallen asleep but Ronon shook him awake.

"Doctor, how is he." Sheppard asked, noting how very tired Jennifer looked.

"Well, the good news is that he made it though surgery. That was a concern for us. He suffered a pneumothorax, a hemothorax, and a couple of broken ribs; there was a lot of damage and he lost a lot of blood. We are trying to maintain his pressure and replace the fluids that he lost. I am not going to lie to you; Corporal Brenner is not out of the woods. It is going to be touch and go for several hours."

Rodriquez, who had stood up with Torren in his arms when Keller approached, asked, "Doctor, when can I see him?"

Keller smiled at the young corporal, "He is going to be in recovery for quite a while, and I don't want to move him too much; then he'll be in intensive care. You should remain here with the colonel and his team. We'll keep you informed."

Sheppard looked from Rodriguez to Keller, "He'll be right here; thanks, doc."

Rodriguez turned to Sheppard, who shook his head, "Don't say it, we're all a team, corporal."

Twenty four hours later, Sheppard was feeling a lot better; rest, fluids, and some decent food had helped him regain his strength. Usually he would be pestering the doctors to let him out of the infirmary or he would have already snuck out. However, this was different and for once, he had no desire to leave; not just yet.

Teyla had just arrived and Rodney had gone to his lab for a bit, actually he left ranting about all the things Zelenka had most likely screwed up while he was gone. Ronon had convinced Rodriguez that he needed a workout and a shower. Actually he and Sheppard had decided that the kid needed a diversion; working out with Ronon was certainly a diversion.

"How are you today, John."

"Better, I think Beckett's going to kick me out today."

"That is a good thing, John Sheppard."

"Yeah, I guess." He glanced toward the ICU unit. "He had a really tough night; heart stopped twice but they got him back."

"Colonel, you realize that the corporal may not make it. Jennifer and Carson are both very worried."

"I know; I'm just trying to figure out if he doesn't how I keep Rodriguez from reacting the way I did the first time I lost a close friend on a mission. I became careless, completely unconcerned for my own safety much less anyone else's. Ray's too good a Marine and too good a man for that to happen."

"Colonel, how are you doing today?" Richard Woolsey had walked up to Sheppard's bed.

"About to be kicked out of here I think."

Woolsey sat down in the chair McKay had abandoned, "I just spoke to Dr. Keller and she told me Brenner had a couple of close calls last night. Let's hope this young man is strong enough to come through this." Sheppard just nodded his head in agreement.

"I thought I would bring you up to speed on my talks with Jast Veron and the Keepers. Veron is still very distraught over what his brother did to their own people much less what he did to you and the others."

"He should realize he is not responsible for his brother's actions." Sheppard remarked.

"While that is true, colonel, nevertheless, he does feel responsible. It appears that they feel responsibility about other things that they had no control over. As time passed and they fully realized the nature of the items that their ancestors had stolen from culled worlds, they were appalled. The scope of treasures that had been taken and the fact that their ancestors had no qualms about taking these items. As the hundreds of years passed the artifacts became a badge of shame for each of the passing Keepers. It was after the Wraith started culling them that they began to try to figure out what to do to make amends for their ancestors.

I have seen the inventory and it is immense, Dever had not taken even a third of what they actually have and he had taken enough. There are extremely valuable artifacts, precious metals, jeweled pieces but there are also books with recorded histories of worlds that may not know what their worlds were like before the Wraith came. I believe those are certainly the most valuable of the artifacts.

Teyla was hanging on every word that Woolsey uttered. "This is so exciting for this galaxy; for even one world to be able to have a piece of their history before the Wraith is amazing."

"I agree, Teyla, and so do the Glosterns. Hundreds of years ago, some of them realized that the items could be a source of contention for their own citizens. They feared someone like Dever would try to take the treasure for themselves even then. So they literally stole the items back from the thieves and put them in the hands of several trusted families and swore them to secrecy. These families became the Keepers and they have kept these secrets for a very long time."

"I spoke with Losa Harben, and colonel, she is greatly appreciative that Glostern's new friends from Atlantis saved her and, more importantly to her, her daughter. Her husband was the Master Keeper and the only Keeper who knew all of the families that held treasure. He put to and to together and was on his way to a meeting of the Keepers when Dever killed him."

Sheppard remember something, " One of the women we spoke with when we first arrived told us that Paut had been killed and that he was on his way to meet with 'them' she said. She must have been talking about the Keepers. You know, the Tribunal Hall walls were lined with shelves and there was nothing on them, I wonder if those artifacts were displayed there at one time."

"In fact, colonel, up to a couple of hundred years ago some of them were. They have wanted to return these artifacts for centuries but with the Wraith they did not feel it was wise and they felt that if it became known that they had these artifacts, they would be vulnerable to more than just the Wraith. They just never realized that the danger would come from one their own."

"I have contacted the Pegasus Coalition and requested their help in returning the artifacts and we are going to review all of them in case they have some Ancient artifacts among the items. We will retain any Ancient artifacts unless they hold some ceremonial value."

"I tell you, Mr. Woolsey, we never know what we are going to come across around here."

"That we do not, colonel; we certainly do not. Now, I would like to talk to you about another…" Woolsey was interrupted by the sound of a monitor alarm going off.

There was a flurry of movement by the medical personnel toward the ICU. Teyla looked at the colonel with fear in her eyes and she left hurriedly in that direction. Sheppard and Woolsey waited nervously for her to return.

When she did return, her face was pale, "John, Corporal Brenner has gone into cardiac arrest again. I am not sure he is going to make it," tears were running down her face and she grabbed Sheppard's hand, feeling his own fear for the young corporal in the strength with which he gripped her hand.

_The New Lantia Mainland_

It had been a bit over a month since Sheppard and the teams from Atlantis had returned from Glostern. Sheppard had returned to active duty two weeks after their return and had been back to Glostern with a team of scientists who were helping catalogue the artifacts. So far, a few of the artifacts had been of Ancient origin and McKay and Zelenka were positively giddy about a couple of them but hadn't shared their delight with others as of yet. That, however, was perfectly fine with Colonel Sheppard. At the moment, he had better things to do than hang around the science labs.

He was stretched out in a lounge chair, on the nicest beach New Lantia had to offer, basking in the warmth of the sun. He couldn't seem to get enough of the warm sunshine. Sheppard had made good on the promise he made to himself that first cold night on Glostern. He had planned a camping trip to the mainland and they were now on the second day of what he hoped was going to be a week long vacation.

Arriving yesterday around mid-day, Ronon and Rodney had helped him put up the tents, set up the fire pit he had gotten on Earth, put up the volleyball net, and unload the surfboards, fishing gear, footballs, and every other peice of sports equipment they had on Atlantis from the jumpers. Well, he and Ronon had done most of that; Rodney had been more worried about unloading the food and coolers they had brought with them.

"Sheppard, do you want another beer?" Ronon was rummaging in the beer cooler for his favorite brew, a dark lager.

"Yeah, I could go for another." Ronon grabbed Sheppard's favorite and tossed the can at him. As he did, a voice belong to a body lounging on chair nearby mumbled something about another beer for him as well.

Sheppard looked over at Dr. Carson Beckett who was slouched down in his chair and he told Ronon, "I think the good doctor is on his way to another sleep laden afternoon. A couple more of those and we won't hear anything out of him."

Ronon dropped a beer off to Beckett and came over to Sheppard and dropped into the chair next to the colonel.

"Too bad that beer doesn't work on McKay the way it does on Beckett. Then they would both be quiet."

Sheppard laughed, "If it were only that easy. At least, for the moment, Rodney is more interested in keeping an eye on Johnston to make sure he doesn't eat all the food." The big sergeant was wearing a soft boot on his broken leg and was having no trouble getting from his chair to the food and back.

Sheppard looked around at the soldiers that were on the beach. He had decided to include as many of the men and women in his command that wanted to join them. Most of the military contingent was coming from Atlantis for the day on a rotating basis so that they could get as many as possible out for some fun. There was all sorts of sports to play or not play along with food and beer all day long. He had only wanted a core group of people in the evening and overnight; there were only seven of them actually camping out for the week. He'd even talked Woolsey into spending the night, so at least tonight there were eight.

Teyla, Kanaan, and Torren were enjoying the surf; Sergeant Mehta was kicking butt in a beach volleyball match against Major Teldy, and there were surfers and swimmers in the water. Sheppard chuckled as he saw that the volleyball match seemed to be getting more attention from his guys than any of the other sports that were being played at the moment. He wasn't certain if it was the action or the bikinis that had their attention. Zelenka and Chuck Campbell were sitting in the shade along the tree line, playing chess. So far, everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves.

Sheppard looked out at the ocean and saw that one of the overnight campers was coming in after surfing for the last hour. There were some sweet waves on this beach and he had spent the morning enjoying them. The afternoon was reserved for beer and sleep; tonight, they were grilling steaks and roasting baked potatoes in the fire. All in all, it was going to be a good week.

The dripping wet surfer sat down in the chair next to Sheppard with a huge grin on his face. "Colonel, this has to be the best vacation ever; those waves are almost Pacific waves. That was a blast."

"Rodriguez, you're like a fish out there and you can surf like a pro."

"Hey, sir, you're not so bad yourself." Rodriguez grabbed a towel and started to dry off, "Listen, colonel, how can I thank you for having this camping trip. I mean you and your team, they have done so much already and now to include all of us in what is really your vacation. Well, I can tell you that there isn't a Marine…oh, yeah…or airman here that doesn't appreciate this, colonel."

"Enough with the flattery, Marine; I already gave you a medal, what more do you want?" Sheppard flashed a lop-sided grin at the corporal before he took another drink of his beer.

"Really, sir, if I can be serious for one minute. Back when we returned from Glostern, you and your team never left me alone to deal with what happened to Pauli by myself. After that third code he had, well, sir, those were some tough days. I got through them because of you and Ronon, Teyla and Dr. McKay. Hell, I even kind of like scientists now. Just thank you, colonel; you're the best C.O. we could ask for."

Sheppard laughed quietly, wondering what some of his former commanding officers would think of that statement. "No need to thank me or anyone else, Ray. You've learned what it took me a very long time to learn. That your teammates are what makes you survive this; you can't do it without them and believe me, you wouldn't want to."

"Yes, sir."

"The good thing, Ray, is you don't have to survive without your buddy."

Sheppard looked past Rodriguez at the sleeping form of one Corporal Paul David Brenner, who was nestled in a chair, sitting under a beach umbrella. He was still a bit pale and much thinner than he had been on Glostern but he had been on the edge of death for several days. He was at least another month away from active duty but he survived. Another tough Marine, Sheppard thought and as he looked around he realized he had an over abundance of those. That was something to be glad about and he was very glad.

"Yeah, colonel, I don't have to do with out my buddy which is a good thing. Besides, he hadn't introduced me to his cousin yet; you know, Sarah, the Army Ranger."

Sheppard looked over at his corporal who was grinning from ear to ear. He laughed and thought this was definitely going to be a good week. He took another drink of his beer and decided to watch some beach volleyball.


End file.
